Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya to visit Assam, north-eastern states, review COVID cases

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya is all set to visit Assam tomorrow on August 17, to review the COVID situation in the North-Eastern states. He will also be reviewing construction work at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Changsari, 28 km from Guwahati. The Health Minister will be accompanied by the Director of the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and other senior officials of the Health Ministry. 

Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya visits Kerala, announces ₹267.35 crore COVID package

Health Minister Mandaviya paid a visit to Kerala on Monday, August 16, to review the COVID-19 situation in the state, as it has contributed to India's 50 percent COVID caseload for the last one month. The Minister announced a special package of ₹267.35 crores for Kerala to strengthen its health infrastructure to fight the pandemic effectively. The Union Minister met Kerala's Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and State Health Minister Veena George and officials in the T'puram. 

“We will provide all possible help to the state. Besides this amount, ₹1 crore will be made available to each district to create a medicine pool. The Centre will also ensure the creation of a centre of excellence that caters to telemedicine facilities in every district,” the minister tweeted after his marathon talks with the CM and others. He also said the state will be given top priority in the allocation of vaccines.

COVID situation in Assam

On the the hand, Assam on Sunday, August 15, reported 10 more COVID deaths which took the toll up to 5,492, according to a bulletin issued by the National Health Mission. The COVID caseload rose to 5,79,899 as 411 more people tested positive for the infection. Two fresh fatalities were registered in Jorhat district and one each in Dibrugarh, Kamrup, Karbi Anglong, Morigaon, Nalbari, Sivasagar, Sonitpur, and West Karbi Anglong districts. Out of the fresh COVID cases, 90 were reported from Kamrup Metropolitan, followed by 25 in Sivasagar, 23 in Golaghat and 22 in Lakhimpur. At least 857 people were cured of the infection during the day, taking the total number of recoveries to 5,65,087.

COVID cases in Kerala

Meanwhile, Kerala recorded 18,582 new COVID-19 incidents on Sunday, bringing the total number of cases to 36.69 lakh, with 18,601 persons succumbing to the disease and 102 more deaths. According to a state government release, 20,829 persons have been cured of the infection since Saturday, bringing the total number of recoveries to 34,92,367 and the number of active cases in the state to 1,78,630.

Inputs from ANI