BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday, January 4, 2022, asked officials to expedite preparations to deal with the Omicron situation and ready all hospitals and necessary infrastructure within the next 10 days. Reviewing the Covid situation through video conferencing, the Chief Minister said that adequate hospital beds and ICUs should be ready immediately. The number of beds and ICUs should be at least equal to the peak period of the second wave of the pandemic, he said.
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The Chief Minister also asked the officials to work in a campaign mode to achieve the vaccination target with focus on those in the 15 to 18 age group. He urged people to abide by all Covid protocols and cooperate with the State government so that harsh measures can be avoided. He said that the government will have to impose some restrictions to check the spread of the virus but these should not affect the livelihood of the people.
During the second wave, monitoring groups were set up and observers to different districts appointed for proper management of the situation. Besides, officials were entrusted with responsibilities for oxygen management, launching information campaigns and preparing training modules. The Chief Minister said that the monitoring groups and observer system should be reactivated. Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra said that officers will be asked to visit districts to assess the situation.