MARGAO
With no letup in the Covid surge in the state, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Tuesday sent an SOS to the Centre to dispatch additional doses of Covid vaccines and has requisitioned the Ponda hospital to take care of the rising number of patients.
The Health Minister, however, ruled out the possibility of a lockdown in the state, saying only restrictions will not arrest the spread of coronavirus, even as he stressed self-discipline to tackle the situation.
The Health Minister on Tuesday hopped from one primary health centre to another, besides Hospicio and other hospitals in South Goa, to take a review of the situation, especially the ongoing vaccination drives in the villages.
The Health Minister said the experience the health authorities learned in the first wave of coronavirus last year came in handy to meet the emerging situation head-on.
Speaking to the media after inspecting the Navelim Primary Health Centre, the Health Minister said he spoke to Union Health Minister Harshvardhan and pleaded with him to send additional doses of vaccines to Goa.
“The Union Minister was kind enough to assure me that the Centre will send additional doses of the vaccine which will take care of the people waiting for the second dose. The minister has also assured to help the state to tide over the shortcomings,” he said.
Conceding that Covid cases are surging in the state, he said the Ponda hospital has been requisitioned by the government as a priority. “We will set up additional beds at the Ponda hospital which will help us to take the battle head-on,” he added.
Saying that the response from the public to the ongoing vaccination exercise has been encouraging, the Minister exuded confidence that more and more will come out and take the jab.
“People are watching the TV every day and they know about the prevailing situation. We are also trying to convince them to take the jab,” he said, adding that Covid impact will be mild for people who have taken the vaccine.
Saying that the government has adequate stock of medicines required to treat Covid patients, he said the decision to start testing labs at the Goa Medical College and hospital, Bambolim, and the South Goa district hospital will help in the efforts to detect the virus and for early diagnosis.
To a question whether the state has received any instructions from the Centre to go for a lockdown, the HM said lockdown was not a solution. “We have to wear masks and maintain social distancing. Each individual needs to be disciplined. We are a small place and we have to ensure that economic activities also go on,” he added.
