Do not permit mass gatherings, DCs told

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 13

In view of the emerging threat of Covid in the state, the Group of Ministers (GoM) convened a meeting under the chairmanship of Local Bodies Minister Brahm Mohindra here on Friday.

Deputy Commissioners have been instructed not to grant permission for mass gatherings. Religious leaders and dera heads have been requested to postpone their congregations.

Besides Brahm Mohindra, the GoM comprises Om Parkash Soni, Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Razia Sultana, Balbir Singh Sidhu, Vijay Inder Singla and Bharat Bhushan Ashu.

The GoM’s mandate is to take stock of the situation daily and ensure the availability of requisite medicines, and medical and paramedical staff. It is also responsible for setting up sufficient quarantine wards across the state to isolate suspected Covid patients.

Brahm Mohindra said, “The state machinery took immediate action to check the spread of the virus. At present, 2,200 quarantine beds are ready throughout the state. Besides, 250 ventilators are at the disposal of there in private hospitals, while there are 20 ventilators each in government medical colleges of Amritsar and Patiala.”

He said anganwari workers, District Development and Panchayat Officers (DDPOs), Block Development and Panchayat Officers (BDPOs), and panchayat secretaries would contact people in rural areas to sensitise them.

District Education Officers (DEOs) will ensure that school students must maintain one meter distance among them during morning assemblies. “The GoM will review the compliance with directions on Monday,” the minister added.

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