Union Minister Bharati Pravin Pawar on Tuesday held meetings with senior officials of the Andaman and Nicobar administration here to review preparedness to deal with any spurt in COVID-19 cases in the archipelago, an official said.
After arriving here in the morning, Pawar, the Union Minister of State for Health, went to the Govind Ballabh Pant Hospital near Cellular Jail here to oversee a mock drill to check readiness of the health facility for effective management of coronavirus infections.
“We are thankful to the union minister for her visit to Port Blair. She took notes of the preparedness of health facilities across the islands in terms of availability of oxygen, ICU beds, isolation wards, essential medicines, protective kits, ambulances, frontline workers, and test kits," said Dr Avijit Roy, the nodal officer of COVID-19 management in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
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Many hospitals across the country held mock drills on Tuesday to check the readiness of health facilities in view of proper COVID-19 management.
Pawar also visited Swaraj Dweep, earlier known as Havelock Island and also one of the major tourist destinations, to hold similar meetings with the health officials and oversee mock drills.
The Centre has asked states and union territories to conduct the drill as part of precautionary measures following an increase in COVID-19 infections in China and other countries.
Pawar’s visit to Port Blair was part of the directive issued by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
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The union territory has so far recorded 10,741 COVID-19 cases, while 10,612 people have recovered from the infection and 129 succumbed to the disease.
-With PTI Input
