Containing Covid is the only priority: CM KCR

HYDERABAD: Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao said that the state government was ready to spend any amount to contain coronavirus in the state and there is no constraint of funds.

Stating that there is no other priority except for controlling Covid-19, he asked finance minister T. Harish Rao to increase budgetary allocation for health and police departments by decreasing the budget of other departments.

He instructed Harish Rao to identify departments that incur less expenditure and divert those funds to police and health departments, which are incurring heavy expenditure in the fight against Covid-19.

Rao held a high-level meeting at Pragathi Bhavan to review the Coronavirus situation in the state on Monday. Senior officials from health, police and other departments were present.

Rao asked officials to implement a 'dual-pronged strategy' to check the spread of virus. He said that Coronavirsu tests should be increased substantially while at the same time there was a need to intensify the ongoing door-to-door fever survey. Those showing symptoms should be provided with medical kits, he said. He sought purchase of 50 lakh rapid antigen test kits in order to increase corona tests.

The Chief Minister instructed corona task force chairman K.T. Rama Rao to talk to vaccine manufacturers for supply of the quantity needed for the second dose.

Rao said that around 160 beds in Gandhi hospital and 200 in Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital should be earmarked separately for black fungus patients. He said the bed strength for black fungus patients should be increased to 1,500 in the State with 1,100 of them earmarked for Hyderabad.

“People from the neighbouring states are coming here for treatment of Covid and black fungus. It appears that we cannot escape from giving treatment to people from other states,” Rao said.