We are keeping a close eye on the Covid situation in China, says Govt

While official figures of recent Covid-19 infections and deaths are hard to come by, social media has been flooded with videos and images of overcrowded healthcare facilities as well as crematoriums…reports Asian Lite News

India is keeping a close eye on the Covid-19 situation in China but there is no specific guideline for Indians living there as of now, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday.

“We are keeping a close eye on the situation evolving in China. There is no advisory or specific guideline by the MEA for Indians living in China as of now,” MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in response to a question at the weekly media briefing.

Indian nationals living in China would be expected to follow guidelines issued by the local health authorities, he added.

Bagchi also pointed out that India had helped other countries as the pharmacy of the world after the Covid-19 outbreak.

The past few days have seen China reporting an alarming surge in Covid-19 cases after it relaxed stringent curbs under its ‘zero-Covid policy’ after huge country-wide protests.

While official figures of recent Covid-19 infections and deaths are hard to come by, social media has been flooded with videos and images of overcrowded healthcare facilities as well as crematoriums.

Reviewing the Covid-19 situation in India amid a sharp spike in cases in China and several other countries, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya had on Wednesday directed officials to stay alert and step up surveillance.

The review came a day after the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare sent a letter to States and Union Territories citing the COVID-19 situation in the USA, Japan, South Korea, Brazil, and China.

Through the letter, Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan requested all States and Union Territories (UTs) to gear up the genome sequencing of positive case samples to track the variants through the SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) network.

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