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Aiming for the Assembly poll to be held next year in Rajasthan, BJP planned a “Jann Aakrosh Yatra” that now stands suspended due to rising cases of Covid at the global level. The Yatra was launched by BJP chief J.P. Nadda on December 1, to question the present Congress Government headed by Ashok Gehlot, about issues concerning farmers and governance.
Letter to Rahul Gandhi
In earlier events, Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ was also asked to discontinue in case of recklessness concerning Covid Protocols. Mansukh Mandaviya wrote a letter addressing Rahul Gandhi whereby he explained the concerns of the MPs from Rajasthan regarding the rising instances of Covid in the state because of the ongoing Yatra. Two key points were highlighted where one discussed the basic precautionary steps and the other requested him to discontinue the Yatra if the precautions were not taken care of.
The Health Minister said that this letter to Rahul Gandhi was not considering politics but just to fulfill his duties as the Health Minister. He also cited the example of the newly appointed Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, who was found infected with Covid soon after he participated in the “Bharat Jodo Yatra’.
The Status of Covid in India
The Members of Parliament including Prime Minister Narendra Modi were seen wearing masks as they showed up for the winter session proceedings in the Parliament. The Rajya Sabha Chairman, Jagdeep Dhankar, and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla also followed suit. This signifies that the people in the Parliament are very well aware of the panic situation Covid is again creating on a global level. Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has also directed all the states to re-introduce the wearing of masks and hand sanitizers in public places.
The official website of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare shows the active cases of Covid in India as of 22nd December to be 3402 to which Kerela made a maximum contribution of 1438. Kerela Health Minister Veena George issued an alert in the state but also said that it is not a matter of concern because Kerela has achieved 100 percent vaccination. On the 21st of December, the concerned ministry issued some guidelines for international arrivals which includes wearing masks, maintaining physical distancing, thermal screening, and isolation if necessary.
Prime Minister’s meeting
The Prime Minister of India has called for a high-level meeting in order to understand the status of preparedness of the country against Covid. Amit Shah, Mansukh Mandaviya, and Jyotiraditya Scindia are among the people called in to review the situation. The NITI AAYOG member V K Paul, after the detection of four cases of the BF.7 variant, has said that there is nothing to panic about as the cases detected in India did not lead to a spike.
Precautionary actions by the State Governments
The state governments are also trying to maintain all kinds of preventive measures on a state level. A random sampling of International passengers is also being practiced at all international borders across India. The Chief Minister of Delhi has scheduled a high-level meeting and the Health Minister of Karnataka has emphasized focusing on the booster dose of vaccination.
