Ahead Of Festive Season, Centre Extends COVID-19 Guidelines Till Sept 20

Ahead of the festive seasons, the Union Government, on Saturday, extended all existing COVID-19 guidelines in the entire nation up to September 30.

Union Ministry Of Home Affairs(MHA), in a statement, said, "The overall pandemic situation at the national level now appears to be largely stable, except for the localised spread of the virus in a few States. Moreover, the total number of active cases and high case positivity in some districts continues to remain a matter of concern." 

India registered 46,759 fresh cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, the highest single-day increase in nearly two months. Looking at the numbers, it indicated a trend that has been visible over the past week. Meanwhile, Kerala also contributed to the nationwide surge. 

"The State Governments/UT Administrations concerned, having high positivity in their districts, should take proactive containment measures so as to effectively arrest the spike in cases and to contain the spread of transmission. It is important to identify warning signs of potential surges early on and to take appropriate measures to curb the spread. This would require a localized approach, as has been mentioned in Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) advisories dated 25.04.2021 and 28.06.2021, the Ministry added in a statement. 

Ministry of Home Affairs extends it’s Order for implementation of targeted and prompt actions for COVID-19 management till 30th September 2021. pic.twitter.com/NXxb7vbW5Y

— Spokesperson, Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) August 28, 2021

Southern state accounts for more than half of all the active Coronavirus cases in India, followed by Maharashtra, said Union Ministry Of Health And Family Welfare.

"Enforcement of COVID-19 appropriate behavior is essential for tackling the pandemic on a sustained basis. Weekly Enforcement Data, received from States/UTs regarding wearing facemasks in public, maintaining social distancing norms, imposition of fines, etc., indicates a downward trend in enforcement. States and UTs are requested to augment their enforcement efforts for effectively checking transmission of the disease," Ministry said. 

Keeping an eye on the forthcoming festival season in several states of the country, the centre has directed the state governments and UT to prevent large gatherings. "State Governments/UT Administrations are further advised to take suitable measures to avoid large gatherings during the coming festive season and if required, impose local restrictions to curb such large gatherings. In all crowded places, COVID appropriate behaviour should be strictly enforced. We need to continue to focus on the five-fold strategy i.e. Test-Track-Treat-Vaccination and adherence to COVID Appropriate Behaviour, for effective management of COVID-19," it added.