Union Health Ministry tagged 5 Assam districts as COVID-19 hotspots

Many across NE identified

A CORRESPONDENT

NEW DELHI: The Union Health Ministry has identified five districts in Assam as COVID-19 hotspot districts with clusters. Similarly, Lohit in Arunachal Pradesh, seven more districts in Assam, East Khasi Hills in Meghalaya, Aizawl in Mizoram, Gomati and North Tripura in Tripura have been categorized as non-hotspot districts reporting cases.

Union Health Secretary Preeti Sudan on Wednesday sent a detailed strategy by including names of the COVID-hot spot and non-hotspot districts with the Chief Secretaries of the respective States.

Golaghat, Morigaon, Nalbari, Goalpara, Dhubri are the districts in Assam which have been put under hotspot districts with cluster. In these districts, COVID positive cases have been reported but not in a large scale. Significantly these five districts from Assam are among 207 districts which have been identified by the Centre as COVID-19 hotspot districts with cluster.

Cachar, Hailakandi, Kamrup, Kamrup Metro, Lakhimpur, South Salmara and Karimganj in Assam have been identified as non-hotspot districts reporting cases.

In a letter sent to the State Chief Secretaries, Sudan has appealed to all the State governments to utilize the extended lockdown period to the maximum extent to convert the hotspots (red) to orange and finally turn them into green zones.

“Containment operation would be deemed over when there is no case reported in 28 days from an area after the last case is tested negative. Hotspots (designated red zones) will be assumed to be undertaking effective containment activities; if no case is reported in the next 14 days (designated orange zones) and will be deemed successful in containment if no case is reported for 28 days (designated green zones),” said Sudan in her letter.

After the expiry of the 21-day lockdown on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has extended the lockdown period till May 3 to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

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