Indian government to send teams to 10 states with high COVID-19 cases, low vaccination

NEW DELHI, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- The Indian government will send teams to 10 states that are either reporting an increasing number of COVID-19 cases or slow vaccination pace, officials said Saturday.

A health official conducts a Covid-19 coronavirus screening of a passenger at a railway station during an enforcement drive in Bangalore on December 3, 2021. (File photo: AFP)

The multi-disciplinary federal government teams will visit Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Mizoram, Karnataka, Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab to help local administrations improve testing and surveillance and enforce COVID-19 appropriate behavior.

"In view of rapid surge in cases and deaths because of COVID-19, as reported by various news channels, the state governments and noted in internal reviews, it has been seen that the number of Omicron has emerged in some states," said a statement released by the federal health ministry.

The statement added that the pace of COVID-19 vaccination in these states "is less than the national average."

The teams will work with local health authorities for three to five days. During this period, they will also check on the progress of COVID-19 vaccination in each state and review existing hospital infrastructure, including the availability of beds and medical oxygen.