State reports 39 fresh Coronavirus cases today taking total to 164
Trivandrum, March 27: The Kerala Government has welcomed the Rs 1.7 lakh crore comprehensive Covid relief package announced by the Central Government while making few suggestions and requests in its implementation. Kerala Chief Minister, Shri Pinarayi Vijayan has called for the inclusion of the Doctors and Medical workers from the private sector in the insurance coverage scheme announced by the Centre.
Addressing the media in Thiruvananthapuram, the Chief Minister said, “We request the Central government to include the healthcare workers from the private sector also in the insurance scheme. They are playing an important role in battling this virus and we cannot belittle their valuable contribution. Further, we also request the Central Government to discuss the requirements of the State governments to widen the scope of the Covid relief package. We want an increase in the borrowing capacity to 5%, from the current 3%. We also demand the allocation of more funds for the medical sector and one month free ration for all citizens.” He also welcomed the RBI’s moratorium on loans while appealing for a waiver of interest on the loans.
Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Smt K K Shailaja Teacher, and Revenue Minister, Shri E Chandrasekharan, and Chief Secretary Shri Tom Jose IAS were also present during the media interaction.
The CM informed that the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi today took stock of the situation in Kerala and expressed his satisfaction on the steps taken in tackling the outbreak. The State Government has also asked for support from the Union Minister for Food and Public Distribution, Shri Ram Vilas Paswan in distributing food grains and provision kits to all households in the State.
Giving details about the Covid-19 scenario, the Chief Minister said, “39 new cases have been reported today taking the total number of cases to 164 in Kerala. Out of this, 34 are from Kasargod District, two from Kannur; and one each from Thrissur, Kozhikode and Kollam Districts. Out of the 34 fresh cases, 25 have come from Dubai and 13 got it from mutual contact locally. A total number of 1,10,299 people are under observation in Kerala out of which 1,09,683 are in their own homes while 616 are in hospitals. 112 persons were hospitalised today. 5,679 samples were sent for testing and 4,448 have tested negative.”
At a time when migrant labourers in other States are going back to their native places, Kerala is committed to their care and protection. The CM informed that 4,603 camps have been opened across Kerala for the migrant labourers in the State and currently, 1,44,145 labourers are staying there where they are being provided with shelter, medical care and food. In places where their situation is bad, the Labour Department will make fruitful interventions. The Local Self Government bodies will also make necessary arrangements for their welfare. “Brochures and short videos in Hindi, Oriya and Bengali are being prepared for the benefit of migrant labourers. The Bihar and Jharkhand governments are also in touch with us for monitoring the situation of the labourers from their State”, he added.
The Chief Minister expressed his concern over the blocking of roads at different places along the border the Karnataka Government. He said the residents of these border villages are dependent on the neighbouring State for various needs and now Karnataka has blocked them out by piling truckloads of soil on the roads and this goes against the spirit of the central government. “We need to figure out a way to address this issue. The Karnataka government should enforce the lockdown but what will people do in an emergency? We will bring it to the notice of the Prime Minister and hope the issue is resolved soon so as to tend the misery of people living in the border areas.”
The CM reiterated that those who came from outside Kerala in the recent past should go in for mandatory isolation and if they have symptoms, they should contact the Covid hospitals who will make arrangements for transporting their test sample. Those in close contact with them should also be in isolation. The sick and the elderly should also stay in isolation and practise social distancing seriously.
The Kannur Medical College hospital with 200 beds, 40 ICU beds and 15 ventilators, is being designated as Covid Hospital. Steps are being taken to enable testing at the Kasargod Central University which would be converted to a Covid Primary Care Centre. The Kasargod Medical College hospital will also be made into a Covid Hospital. The State government will explore all available options for the treatment of affected patients including Cuban medicine after getting necessary approvals from the Drugs Controller.
The Chief Minister has appealed to the people to contribute to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund which will help in tiding over the crisis of granting monetary relief to deserving families and individuals. “We will overcome this challenging situation through our unity and resilience.”