Reddy advises NE States to utilize the unspent balances under NESIDS Scheme for creation of health infrastructure

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaJanuary 12, 2022

Union Minister for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) G Kishan Reddy on Wednesday advised the North East States to utilise the unspent balances allocated to the States under NESIDS Scheme and the Emergency Covid Response Package (ECRP-Phase-II) for creation of health infrastructure in the states.

He was chairing a review meeting to monitor the preparedness of the eight states of the North Eastern Region (NER) with respect to the COVID-19 situation.

The meeting was attended by the respective Health Ministers of the 8 North Eastern States.  Secretary, DONER, Joint Secretary, Health & Family Welfare and Health Secretaries from the North Eastern Region States along with senior officials of both the Ministries and their organisations were also present.

called on all the state health ministers to develop medical and health infrastructure, procure medicines and procure COVID-19 specific essentials such as masks, PPE kits and oxygen concentrators etc.

He also urged the states to use all media and communication channels to bring awareness about the 3rd wave due to the Omicron variant.

The Minister called on the state officials to ensure that all COVID-19 specific protocols are followed and stressed on regular RT-PCR testing, and home isolation in the case of non-critical cases as per the standard operating procedures (SOPs) released by the Government of India.

The Minister also requested all the 8 states to adopt the Teleconsultation platform eSanjeevani that has hubs at a district level to ensure that those under home isolation have access to regular health care and monitoring and also to ensure that they have supplies of essentials and medical kits.

Apart from this the Union Minister also advised for strict enforcement measures and extensive testing and contact tracing measures. He said, all to monitor the preparedness of the eight states of the North Eastern Region (NER) with respect to the COVID-19 situation

Reddy urged states to focus on all COVID protocols as per the SOPs laid out by the Government of India, especially rapid scaling of RT-PCR tests, focus on home isolation for non severe cases and regular monitoring through Teleconsultation platform, eSanjeevani.

The Minister also exhorted the states to strive for 100% vaccination and also requested states to ensure that precautionary doses and vaccination for adolescents between the age group of 15-18 are carried out on mission mode.