WHO Report on India about COVID19

HIGHLIGHTS

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• Union Minister along with WHO representative participated in a virtual 

Interactive session with Health Ministers of member states of WHO sharing

Measures being taken for containment of COVID-19 in India. He stressed “the 

Crisis arising out of COVID-19 has been turned into an opportunity to 

Strengthen the healthcare delivery system in the country.

• MoHFW launched the COVID India Seva an interactive platform and direct 

Channel of communication aimed at enabling transparent e-governance 

Delivery in real-time and answering citizen queries swiftly, at scale, especially 

In crisis situations like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

• Group of Ministers (GoM) continue to undertake detailed deliberation on the 

Measures taken by the Centre and various States/UTs for prevention, 

Containment and management of COVID-19.

• Ordinance was promulgated by the President of India to amend the Epidemic 

Diseases Act, 1897 to protect healthcare service personnel against violence 

During epidemics, ascertaining “zero tolerance to any form of violence against 

Healthcare service and such acts of violence will now be cognizable and non-

Bailable offences.

• WHO together with MoHFW is supporting districts to follow and further 

Strengthen their contingency plans to combat COVID-19; including assessment of dedicated COVID-19 

Hospitals along with the adequacy of isolation beds/wards and other supplies.
INDIA SITUATION

• As of 26 April 2020 (5:00PM), a total of 26 917 COVID-19 cases (111 foreign nationals) in 32 states/union 

Territories, including 5913 cured/discharged,1 migrated, 826 deaths. Active cases: 20 177, details here.
WHO GLOBAL UPDATE

• WHO, together with heads of state, global leaders, private sector partners and other stakeholders launched the 

Access To COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, a global collaboration to accelerate the development, 

Production and equitable access to new COVID-19 diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines, details here.

• WHO has seen a dramatic increase in the number of cyber-attacks directed at its staff, and email scams 

Targeting the public. WHO has urged the public to remain vigilant against fraudulent emails and 

Recommends using reliable sources to obtain information about COVID-19 and other health issues. Details here.

WHO COUNTRY UPDATE

WHO Country Office for India (WCO) continues to work closely with MoHFW, on preparedness and response 

Measures for COVID-19, including surveillance and contact tracing, laboratory diagnosis, risk communications and 

Community engagement, hospital preparedness, infection prevention and control (IPC) and implementation of 

Containment strategies.

• Co-ordination and Partnership: WCO hosted the Health Partners virtual meeting to facilitate consensus and 

Draft implementation strategy to support the MHFW as ‘One UN’ through the Joint Response Plan.

• Laboratory testing: WHO is providing kits and reagents to COVID-19 testing laboratories through ICMR to 

Partly meet their huge testing requirement. A total of 625 309 samples have been tested so far, details here.

O ICMR had clearly laid down the scope, purpose and usage of the rapid antibody tests. ICMR has 

Always emphasized that the confirmatory test for diagnosis of COVID-19 infection is RT – PCR test of 

Throat and/ or nasal swab, which detects virus at early stage, details here.

O ICMR expanded the testing strategy to pregnant women residing in clusters/containment area or in 

Large migration gatherings/evacuees centre from hotspot districts presenting in labour or likely to 

Deliver in next 5 days should be tested even if asymptomatic, details here.

• Surveillance: SARI surveillance is being strengthened in states with support from WCO field staff. SMOs in the 

Field are facilitating CIF filling and IHIP portal data entry along with following up on SARI/ILI surveillance.

• Research: ICMR had announced conducting a national sero-prevalence survey for Covid-19. WCO field teams 

Are supporting states in the initial preparations for undertaking the proposed Survey.

O India has joined the WHO Solidarity Trial for therapeutic treatment options for COVID 19. The trial has 

Received clearance from the regulatory authority of India to move ahead with the trial.

• Risk Communication: WHO is supporting MoHFW on a Campaign to address the issue of stigma, in the 

Society both against COVID positive cases and the medical community.

• State Support: WCO is supporting states through field teams and is now in the process of creating a pool for 

Experts to be part of rapid response teams for special deployment.

ADVICE FOR THE PUBLIC

For all authentic & updated information on COVID-19 related technical issues, guidelines & advisories please regularly 

Visit: https://www.mohfw.gov.in/. In case of any queries on COVID-19, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare helpline 

No.: +91-11-23978046 or 1075 (Toll-free). Helpline numbers of States/UTs on COVID-19 available here.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT

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SITUATION IN NUMBERS India In Detail :-