Centre seeks curbs in 27 districts with high COVID positivity rate

A total of 27 districts in 10 states/Union Territories have been consistently reporting high COVID positive rates for the last fortnight, which needs close monitoring and immediate attention, said Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan in a letter to state chief secretaries and respective local administrations.

Also read: Hope floats: Unemployment rate declines, says latest CMIE survey

As a precautionary measure, Bhushan suggested the concerned states should consider imposing more restrictions, like night curfews, in such cities/towns. Eight districts in three states have been reporting a positivity rate of more than 10% in the past two weeks and 19 districts in seven states/UTs have been reporting positivity rates between 5% and 10% during the same period. Bhushan called for decisive action to help maintain the ongoing national trend of decline in COVID cases.

The Union Health Secretary said that clusters in affected districts should be identified immediately and monitored closely. He suggested local containment measures in case of sudden spurt in cases.

Measures suggested in the 27 districts where positivity rate is high are night curfews, restrictions on gatherings, and limiting the number of people attending marriages and last rites.

As per the health ministry data, 131.99 crore vaccine doses have been administered till Saturday (December 11) under the nationwide vaccination drive. The country’s active caseload currently stands at 93,277, which is the lowest in 559 days.

Also read: Why does Omicron cause reinfection? Quick facts from WHO update

Active cases account for less than 1% of total cases, currently at 0.27%, which is the lowest since March 2020.

Recovery rate currently stands at 98.36%, the highest since March 2020. A total of 9,265 recoveries were reported in the last 24 hours increases. India’s daily positivity rate is 0.64%.