Shillong ( Meghalaya ), Aug 30 : D.C , East Hills District ,Miss Isawanda Laloo in a press release said that while positivity rate and number of cases in East Khasi Hills District have reduced, the total case load still stands at approximately 1300 in the entire district with around 65% of case from urban areas and 35% from rural areas.
She also said that with more activities and movement of persons being permitted, it is essential that there is no laxity in observing basic protocols to prevent another surge in cases.
She also urged upon the people to take care of the following :
1. Use of double mask or N95 mask at all public places is to be followed without fail.
2. To prevent a third wave, it is important to speed up vaccination coverage. It may be mentioned that 82% of COVID-19 positive cases reported daily are unvaccinated. Further, from 1st July to 29th August, 2021, out of 279 COVID- 19 deaths in the district, 235 (85%) were not vaccinated with even a single dose. Therefore it is appealed to everyone who has not taken the vaccine to clarify their doubts and get vaccinated at the earliest.
3. The general public is also urged to come forward for their second dose of vaccination within the recommended time to get full protection against the disease.
4. There are still many cases of persons coming to hospitals who have experienced symptoms for more than a week, with very low Oxygen saturation and at a stage where disease has progressed considerably. It is appealed to the public to go for early testing which is essential to ensure proper monitoring and prevent serious illness and death.
5. Laxity in following protocols especially in big unregulated gatherings has resulted in resurgence of cases in many parts of the country. Further, few instances of mass unregulated protest gatherings held without prior permission or basic safety protocols have been reported in the past week wherein it was seen that many people are without masks and no social distancing was observed. This amounts to gross negligence on the part of the organizers at a time when efforts are being made to control cases so that most activities including livelihood-related activities can be resumed. While necessary action will be taken against such violators, it is emphasized that all should ensure basic compliance to prohibitory orders and orders issued under the Meghalaya Epidemic Disease, COVID-19 Regulations, 2020 in the interest of public health.
6. The website www.ekh-covid.info has been launched for latest statistics and details of cases, vaccination and deaths in the district. The public may visit the website to get detailed data and information for their respective areas.
