India’s Most Populated State Ramps Up COVID-19 Testing Ahead of Holi Festival

By

March 21, 2021

Categories

Culture, Health

Tags

, , , ,

Share

(UTTAR PRADESH, India) — A recent spike in coronavirus cases across India has led authorities in Uttar Pradesh (UP), the country’s most populous state, to ramp up a 15-day focused testing drive ahead of the Hindu festival of Holi on March 29. The drive will run until March 27, testing migrant workers and visitors from other states.

“During Holi, people from other states and areas come back to their homes to celebrate,” Amit Mohan Prasad, UP’s additional chief secretary of health, told The Hindu. “There is a lot of movement during this period.” Prasad himself tested positive for COVID-19 last year.

The drive will include on-site testing at all entry and exit points of the state, including railway stations, airport terminals and bus stops. There will also be a focus on contact tracing. Members of the testing team have been going door-to-door to test locals and warn them of the potential spread of the disease during the holiday.

Holi is a festival of color that marks the triumph of good over evil. It also indicates the arrival of spring and the dramatic increase in the country’s temperatures. While traditional prayers and offerings are performed during Holi, more modern celebrations include throwing colorful powder at unsuspecting friends and family, using water guns and water balloons to stay cool, and dancing and drinking throughout the day. 

UP plans to test shopkeepers and marketplaces where popular Holi items like water guns and dyed powders are sold. Restaurants and liquor-shop workers will also be tested.

Yogi Adityanath, the state’s chief minister, aims to curb COVID-19 not only through focused tests but also by planning to vaccinate 10 million people in UP by March 31, according to DNA India

The New Indian Express reported UP as the first state in India to administer 20 lakh vaccinations, equaling 2 million doses.

Related Posts

Gavel sitting on medical textbook in courtroom

March 21, 2023

Future of Abortion Pill May Hinge on West Virginia Lawsuit

Filed on Jan. 23, GenBioPro v. Sorsaia challenges the constitutionality of the state’s abortion ban. The plaintiff claims that by overriding the approval of the drug by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA), and preventing its sale in West Virginia, the ban violates the Supremacy and Dormant Commerce Clauses of the Constitution, respectively. The case is among the latest in a wave of lawsuits over abortion. Statewide bans and restrictions erupted last year after the Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade, which had protected access to abortions for nearly 50 years. The issue, long one of the more divisive in our political discourse, has intensified as the ability of Americans to access abortion now largely depends on where they live.

March 4, 2023

TikTok Feeds Teen Collaboration and ‘Whole Health’ Initiative

Teens "see the nexus between mental health, social determinants, adverse childhood experiences, and pressures created by social media and world events that lead to self-medication or misuse of substances."