Given the identification of JN.1, a variant of SARS-CoV2, and an uptick in COVID-19 instances in adjacent regions such as Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the state administration has initiated precautionary steps.
On Tuesday, the government unveiled guidelines derived from insights provided by its Covid-19 technical advisory board. Senior citizens, notably those 60 years and older, as well as individuals with underlying health issues like kidney, cardiac, or hepatic conditions, are advised to don masks when visiting densely populated areas. Pregnant individuals, nursing mothers, and those manifesting symptoms such as elevated temperature, coughing, or nasal congestion should wear masks, ensuring coverage of both nostrils and mouth.
Moreover, the public guidance stresses the importance of maintaining personal cleanliness. This involves frequent hand cleansing and abstaining from intimate interactions with others when indisposed, particularly with at-risk categories like the elderly. The board has urged medical facilities to gear up for a potential uptick in contagions and underscored the necessity of subjecting affirmative samples to genetic analysis.
Dr. Ravi, a distinguished figure from Bangalore Medical College and Research Centre’s Department of medicine, conveyed a message of vigilance without inducing undue alarm among citizens. Concurrently, Randeep D, overseeing health and family welfare as commissioner, outlined intentions to amplify COVID-19 evaluations in the region, targeting an eventual scale-up to 5,000 assessments daily.
