Centre reviews situation, public health preparedness as Covid-19 cases rise

According to the June 4 data, India reported 4,302 active cases with an increase of 864 cases in the past 24 hours.

Moneycontrol News

June 04, 2025 / 17:14 IST

Centre reviews situation, public health preparedness as Covid-19 cases rise

The national capital has recorded at least 457 Covid-19 infections. (File photo/PTI)

In view of the recent surge in Covid-19 cases in India, the Union Health Ministry held meetings on June 2 and 3 to review the current situation and public health preparedness of states and union territories.

According to government sources, a series of technical review meetings were held under chairpersonship of Dr Sunita Sharma, Director General of Health Services (DGHS) with representatives of Disaster Management Cell, Emergency Management Response (EMR) Cell, National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) and Central Government Hospitals in Delhi and with representatives from all States and UTs to evaluate the current Covid-19 situation.

As per the June 4 data, India reported 4,302 active cases with an increase of 864 cases in the past 24 hours.

In the review meeting, the states were instructed to ensure availability of oxygen, isolation beds, ventilators, and essential medicines. Testing was also recommended for all admitted SARI cases and 5 percent of ILI cases as per guidelines, according to government sources.

According to the advisory, the public is advised to practice hand hygiene, cough etiquette, and avoid crowded places when unwell. Furthermore, individuals with acute respiratory illness should self-monitor and seek medical care if symptoms worsen.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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