Set up makeshift hospitals, form special teams: Centre tells states as Covid infections rise

New Delhi, Jan 01: As covid cases in India see a dramatic rise, the Centre on Saturday urged states to start creating makeshift hospitals, to tie up with hotels to convert them into temporary hospitals and to keep an eye on paediatric cases.

Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan in a letter to chief secretaries of all States/UTs on measures to deal with a possible surge in COVID cases; advised them to initiate process of setting up makeshift hospitals and constitute special teams to monitor patients in home isolation.

"In India, the case trajectory is also showcasing an upward trend with 16,764 cases reported on December 31, highest ever single day rise in past 70 days. Many developed nations in Europe and Americas are reporting a significant rise in new cases in the past weeks, which indicates high transmissibility of the virus," Bhushan wrote.

To address a potential surge in cases, with a view to ensure preparedness, "states are advised to initiate creation of field or makeshift hospitals". This, he said, can be done with "coordination with DRDO and CSIR as well as the private sector, corporations, NGOs, etc," he said.

"It is imperative to re-emphasise the significance of timely and swift upgradation of health infrastructure in all states and UTs," he said. Bhushan said this becomes all the more important since with the sudden increase in cases, the country may start seeing a stressed health infrastructure.