586 dedicated COVID-19 hospitals set up

The Government of India has set up 586 dedicated COVID-19 hospitals. The hospitals have capacity to accommodate more than 1 lakh isolation beds.

Highlights

The GoI has taken preemptive actions to identify COVID-19 hotspots in India. Apart from isolation beds, around 11,500 ICU beds have also been set up. According to Ministry of Health, in the absence of containment measures there should have been 41% more cases by April 15.

Other measures

The Government has also taken several other measures to increase hospital facilities in the country. More than 20,000 railway coaches were converted into hospital wards. The working personnel in the health care sector and sanitation sector were provided with insurance cover of Rs 50 lakhs per health care worker. Also, the wages of MNREGA workers have been increased to Rs 202 from Rs 182.

Ayushman Bharat Scheme was deployed in the forefront to fight against the disease. The beneficiaries of the scheme were to be tested for free.

Month: Current Affairs - April, 2020