Punjab prepared to deal with Covid third wave: Official
Darpan News Desk IANS, 05 Jan, 2022 01:33 PM
Chandigarh, Jan 5 (IANS) As the number of Covid-19 cases are rising in Punjab with a positivity rate at six per cent, the threat of a third wave looms large, but the Health Department is fully geared to deal with it, said state Health Department Director G.B. Singh on Wednesday.
Although the department has all infrastructural needs in place to deal with the large number of cases expected in case of the third wave becoming a reality, he also appealed to the people to get themselves fully vaccinated against the virus as it is the most potent tool to avoid Covid-19.
To increase vaccination coverage, the Health Department has started vaccinating children in the age group of 15-18 from January 3 and so far approximately 12,000 children were provided the first dose of the vaccine.
He said the drive to administer booster doses of the vaccine is going to start from January 10.
Singh also made an appeal to follow Covid-19 appropriate behaviour strictly as transmissibility of the Omicron variant is three times more than that of the Delta variant.
The Chief Minister told the media here that for more than a year since the Central government had brought three agriculture laws for the benefit of farmers, especially small and marginal ones, unfortunately, some farmer unions had been protesting on the Delhi borders.
While the Centre's announcement to repeal three farm laws is seen as a political decision with eye on forthcoming assembly polls in five states, the BJP claims that it has nothing to do with elections as the party has won many states after laws were passed by the Parliament.
On January 12 this year, the Supreme Court had stayed the implementation of the three farm laws after scores of farmers from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh pitched their tents on various Delhi borders in protest against the three laws.
A nine-member committee of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), the consortium of protesting farmers' bodies, will be meeting on Saturday, and it is likely to put forth four main demands. The meeting will also decide whether the SKM will go ahead with the originally announced 'March Towards Delhi' programme on November 26.
Congress legislator and Punjab unit party president Navjot Singh Sidhu on Friday said the minimum support price (MSP) is the bigger issue than farm laws as it is the lifeline of farmers.
Extending his greetings to the people on Prakash Purb of Guru Nanak Dev, the Chief Minister said it was really a matter of great honour to inaugurate this prestigious project which happens to coincide with Gurpurab.
