New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra on Friday urged the Union Ministers to keep in constant touch with the people in their respective areas and immediately ensure the needs of the people at the local level. Presiding over the cabinet meeting on the second wave of Covid-19, PM Modi said that all the agencies of the government are working unitedly and swiftly to deal with the situation.
“He urged the ministers to keep in touch with the people of their respective regions, help them and get their feedback,” the government said in a statement. During the meeting, the Union Cabinet stated that the current epidemic crisis comes ‘once in a century’ and is a major challenge for the world. The cabinet also reviewed the efforts made by the central and state governments in the last 14 months to deal with the epidemic.
The statement said, “Efforts made by the Central Government in coordination with the states, creation of infrastructure to increase hospital beds, oxygen facilities etc., address issues in production, storage and transportation of oxygen, essential medicines. Dealing with matters related to availability is stated.
It states that measures are being taken to further increase the supply and availability of these essential commodities. The statement said that support measures for the vulnerable population in the form of free food grains and financial assistance to Jan Dhan account holders were also discussed.
It was informed in the meeting that 15 crore doses of Kovid-19 vaccine have been given to the people till now. It was also reported that India is successfully producing two vaccines and many more vaccine candidates are ready for approval in various stages.
The Council of Ministers also highlighted the importance of kovid-appropriate behavior – wearing masks, maintaining a physical distance of six feet with others, and repeatedly washing hands. The Council of Ministers stressed that the participation of the society is an important aspect to carry out the mammoth task, with ministers expressing confidence that the country will rise to the occasion and defeat the virus. This was the first meeting of the Council of Ministers after the second wave of epidemic in the country.
(With agency inputs)