HYDERABAD: The State Health Department has decided to ready 21 lakh home isolation kits and ensure a stock of 545 metric tonnes of oxygen in light of the Omicron variant becoming the dominant strain in South Africa and Europe.
The decision was taken by Health Minister T Harish Rao at a high-level meeting convened with officials on Tuesday. He directed the officials to take no chance on the said issue, saying cases were already spiking in Maharashtra and Kerala.
“Everyone needs to be vigilant against the latest variant by taking both doses of the vaccine and wearing masks at all times, as the pandemic is spreading around the world. A special committee will be formed to monitor the situation on a daily basis,” the Minister said.
Harish Rao also took stock of oxygen lines to beds in the State. Of the 27,996 beds, 25,826 of them have been connected to oxygen lines. He asked health officials to take note of stocks of drugs in Central Drug Stores.
Telangana adds 210 new cases
Telangana recorded 210 cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday with 40,997 tests done. The State also reported 213 recoveries, taking the count of active cases to 3,833. There was one death due to Covid reported on the day. Meanwhile, at Hyderabad airport, 80 passengers from at-risk countries tested negative for Covid-19. Tests to determine if three previously positive patients are infected with the Omicron variant are pending with labs, results of which are likely to come by Wednesday