New Delhi, May 15: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday chaired a high-level meeting over COVID-19 and vaccination relation situation and said that localised containment strategies are the need of the hour especially for states where test positivity rates (TPR) in districts are high.

The Prime Minister instructed that testing needs to be scaled up further with use of both RT-PCR and Rapid Antigen tests, especially in areas with high TPR. India Records Over 3.26 Lakh New COVID-19 Cases, 3,890 Deaths in Past 24 Hours.

"PM Modi further said that states should be encouraged to report their numbers in a transparent manner without any pressure of high numbers showing adversely on their efforts. PM also asked for augmentation of healthcare resources in rural areas to focus on door to door testing and surveillance," read a release by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).

"Discussed a number of issues during today's review meeting on COVID-19, including scaling up testing in areas with high TPR, preparing localised containment strategies, augmenting health capacities in rural areas and ramping up the speed of vaccination," PM Modi tweeted after the meeting.

PM Modi stressed upon the need of empowering ASHA and Anganwadi workers with all necessary tools. He also asked for guidelines to be made available in easy language along with illustrations for home isolation and treatment in rural areas.

Addressing the issue of oxygen supply in rural areas, he directed that a distribution plan for ensuring oxygen supply in rural areas should be worked out, including through provision of oxygen concentrators.

The Prime Minister added that necessary training should be provided to health workers for the operation of such equipment and power supply should also be ensured for smooth operation of such medical devices.

PM Modi on Saturday chaired a high-level meeting on the country's COVID-19 situation and the ongoing vaccination drive. Earlier on Wednesday, the Prime Minister also chaired a meeting to review the availability and supply of oxygen and medicines in the wake of the surge of COVID-19 cases in the country.

As many as 3,26,098 new COVID-19 cases, 3,53,299 discharges and 3,890 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry on Saturday. The number of total cases stands at 2,43,72,907, including 2,04,32,898 recoveries, 2,66,207 deaths, and 36,73,802 active cases.

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