Minister for Food and Civil Supplies Umesh Katti said in Belagavi on Tuesday that he was not in favour of a lockdown immediately. “I think we should first implement the SOP properly. If that does not succeed, then we can think of other measures,’’ he said.
He was speaking to journalists after a meeting to review the COVID-19 situation in the district.
He said that the situation was under control. “We are vaccinating 5,000 people per day and testing around 3,000 per day. There is no need for a war-room as of now. It can be set up if needed,” he said.
He said that he had called the meeting of senior officers such Deputy Commissioner, Superintendent of Police, District Health Officer and others as he felt responsible. The officers will work towards crowd control, bar religious functions and permit limited gathering for family or other public functions, Mr. Katti said.
He said that all village routes on the Goa and Maharashtra border would be strictly monitored. Officers of Police and Health departments, anganwadi workers and teaches will take down details of all travellers, including their names, address, purpose of visit, and other relevant data.
In the meeting, he told officers to ensure strict implementation of COVID-19 protocol and to convince people of the need to wear masks and follow social distancing, using provisions of law.
