Good work done by govt showing results: CM

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that the good work done by the state government in combating coronavirus infection has started showing results as the fatality rate in Uttar Pradesh has come down to 1% while the recovery rate has climbed to over 92 per cent.

“In the mid of April, there was apprehension that Uttar Pradesh would become the hotspot of global corona infection as the positivity rate was very high at that time. Experts had predicted over 1 lakh cases would be reported per day, but just over 7,000 cases have been reported in the state today, which proves that the efforts of the state government have borne fruits,” the chief minister told reporters after a review meeting in Lucknow Commissionary here on Friday.

He said the government has been able to turn the tide because of the increase in testing. “When the corona surge was at its peak, we did not lose heart and increased testing. Today, we can proudly claim that UP has conducted 4.62 crore tests and even the WHO has appreciated this effort of the government,” he said.

The CM talked about the challenge that the government faced in providing oxygen to hospitals and people in home isolation. “The second wave of corona was 30-40 times more infectious than the first, as a result of which the demand for oxygen shot up. We operated oxygen trains and brought oxygen by air and road so that we could meet the demand,” he said, adding that over 300 oxygen plants have been proposed and 19 of those will be in Lucknow.

“As the cases increased, the real test before the government was to increase the number of beds as there was a sudden increase in demand. The DRDO and HAL rose to the occasion. The Medical Education department also made beds available and with collective efforts, we were able to turn the tide,” CM said.

Another challenge, the CM said, is vaccination. “So far, 1.62 crore people have been vaccinated, but our aim is to vaccinate as many people as possible before the probable onset of the third wave. It has been brought to our notice that registration for vaccination in villages is a big issue. We have declared that all the CSCs in rural areas should function and help villagers in this regard,” he said.

“As the third wave is likely to hit the children, our target is to vaccinate at least one parent so that at the time of emergency, parents can stay with their kids, if needed,” he said, adding that an advisory has been issued against black fungus.

The CM said that screening has also been intensified in rural areas. The rapid response teams (RRTs) are screening people and distributing medicines. He also announced that the government would review the situation after officers sent to districts submit their reports by May 24.

Earlier, the CM visited Katwara PHC in Bakshi-Ka-Talaab and also interacted with people who had come for vaccination. Later, he went around the village and inquired whether the villagers were getting medicines or not. He also interacted with members of the monitoring committee.