Hosps in Delhi asked to be on high alert over new Covid variant 'omicron'

According to NDTV, the Chief Secretary, Police Commissioner and other senior officers of the national capital have been asked to ensure strict adherence to all Covid protocols in public places and functions and full preparedness in hospitals to deal with any emergency.

The Delhi Disaster Management Authority will meet experts and representatives of the Ministry of Civil Aviation on Monday to review the situation.

Based on the meeting they are expected to plan a roadmap as countries start reporting fresh cases related to this strain, first detected in South Africa.

The new strain is different from other strains, according to virologists, as it has an "unusually large number of mutations", they added.

Post the meeting the Delhi government will take decisions on conducting RT-PCR tests on passengers arriving from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Hong Kong, and quarantining them, the sources further said.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to stop flights from countries affected by the new variant of the coronavirus to India, the report said.

"I urge Hon'ble PM to stop flights from those countries which are affected by new variant. With great difficulty, our country has recovered from Corona. We shud do everything possible to prevent this new variant from entering India," Mr Kejriwal tweeted.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday directed officials to review plans of easing international travel restrictions.

At the meeting, Modi highlighted the need for monitoring all international arrivals, their testing as per guidelines, with a specific focus on countries identified ‘at risk’, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) statement said.

The World Health Organisation today has asked countries in Southeast Asia to scale up surveillance, strengthen public health and social measures, and enhance vaccination coverage.

The global health body said festivities and celebrations must include all precautionary measures and crowds and large gatherings must be avoided, reported news agency ANI.

Several countries have already imposed restrictions on flights from the country over the new strain even as many people are desperately trying to return home.

Delhi was one of the worst affected states during the second wave of Covid-19 as an unprecedented number of infections stunned the unprepared healthcare system of the city.