COVID-19 testing will be done for all in Delhi, says Amit Shah

Assuring that the prevailing situation will be controlled, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday (June 15) announced that COVID-19 testing will be done for all in Delhi in the subsequent days.

Taking note of the current situation in the national capital and the increasing case of COVID-19, Shah held a meeting with the leaders of all political parties of Delhi. He also added that by June 20, the Delhi government will start conducting 18,000 Covid-19 tests per day.

While informing about the measures, the Congress hit out at the Centre and the Delhi government for the surge in the number of cases.

Shah apprised the leaders of four major political parties of Delhi on the steps taken to check the coronavirus pandemic and sought their views on the issue, a Home Ministry official said.

Delhi: The all-party meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, over management of COVID-19 situation, is underway at the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). pic.twitter.com/3ep7SKKDqk

— ANI (@ANI) June 15, 2020

Leaders of the BJP, Congress, Aam Aadmi Party and the BSP have attended the meeting. Over 41,000 people were infected with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Delhi and it has claimed more than 1,300 lives so far.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Delhi is the third highest in the country after Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

On Sunday, the home minister held two high-level meetings with Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, mayors and commissioners of Delhi’s three municipal corporations to strengthen the strategy to fight the coronavirus.

AAPs Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said it was decided at the meeting that politics should be kept away in the battle against the pandemic, adding that increasing the number of beds in hospitals for coronavirus patients was also discussed.

Announcing a slew of measures after the meeting, Shah said COVID-19 tests would be started at every polling station in the containment zones and a comprehensive house-to-house health survey would be conducted in the hotspots for contact tracing.

In view of shortage of beds for coronavirus patients in Delhi, the Modi government has decided to immediately provide 500 railway coaches, which will be equipped with all facilities, Shah said.

He added that a committee had been constituted under the chairmanship of NITI Aayog member V K Paul to ensure the availability of 60 per cent beds by private hospitals at lower rates and fix the rate of tests and treatment.

Meanwhile, Delhi Congress president Anil Kumar said he raised the issue of surging numbers of COVID-19 patients in Delhi while holding the BJP-ruled Centre and the AAP government in Delhi responsible for it. He also demanded universal testing for COVID-19 and deploying final-year medical students in the battle against the deadly coronavirus.

Similarly, the Congress demanded that COVID-19 testing to be provided to all and that Rs 10,000 be paid to every family in which a member is infected or in a containment zone.

However, sources said there was no discussion about the extension of lockdown.

Confirming the decision, “Many people are speculating whether another lockdown in Delhi in being planned. There are no such plans,” Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted.

(With inputs from agencies)