PM’s address during interaction with State & District officials on Covid-19 management
Speaker: Narendra Modi
Date: 18 May, 2021

Friends, All of you have worked very hard and continue to do so while battling the second wave of corona. There are many of you who, despite being corona positive themselves, continued to look after the situation in your districts. It also encouraged others in the districts and who drew inspiration from you. There are many who could not visit their homes for many days and meet their families. Many have also lost important members of their families and their close ones. In the midst of this difficult situation, you have given top priority to your duty.I have just had the opportunity to hear experiences of many of our colleagues. Well, I have a lot of people in front of me. It has not been possible for everyone (to share their experiences), but everyone had something new and innovative and they found ways in their own way. This is the biggest endeavourfor success in how you use a basic idea locally. There have been several remarkable innovations. Those who could not tell about their experiences must have something important to share. This is my request to all of you to send me in writing without any hesitation what you consider you did exceptionally. I will also consider how best to use your experiences in other districts, because your efforts and innovations should be of use to the country also. And I am sure all the issues that have come before me today will be of great use to us. Therefore, I will wait for your suggestions. I appreciate your every effort. Friends, There are different challenges according to the districts in our country. In a way, every district has its own challenges. You understand the challenges of your district in a much better way. Therefore, when your district wins, it means the country wins,when your district defeats corona, the country defeats corona.Therefore, every district and every village should have this temperament that they will keep their villages free of corona. The people of the villages should take this resolution. I was surprised the last time the arrangements made by people in villages. They did not know how to cope with this and there was no lockdown in the agriculture sector. The best part is that the villagers started farming with social distancing also. You would recall the last time how the people in the villages took the message seriously and modified it according to their needs. This is the strength of the villages. I have seen that even today many villages have managed very well as far as meetings are concerned. One or two people go out for the requirement of the entire village, they bring the essential items and distribute them in the village. And even if any guest comes from the village, he is made to sit outside the house initially. The village has its own strength which is put to use accordingly. I would like to say that all of you have a very important role in this war against corona. You are in a way field commander in this war. As in any war,it is the field commander who gives shape to a big plan, fights that battle on the ground and decides according to the situation. Today, all of you are handling the leadership as an important field commander in this fight. What are our weapons against this virus? The weapons are – local containment zones, aggressive testing and ensuring correct information to the people. The ease of access to the information as to how many beds are available in hospitals and where they are available is of great convenience to the people. Similarly, whether it is curbing black marketing, strict action against such people, or mobilizing frontline workers by keeping their morale high, your efforts as a field commander energise the entire district. Frontline workers are always inspired by your conduct and action and their confidence grows further.I would like to say one more thing to you. If you think that the policy formulated by the government needs any innovation at the district level and it will give strength to the policy, then you have a free hand. Do it. If these innovations are according to the local needs of your district, do it accordingly.If you feel that your innovation is beneficial for the state or for the entire country, share it with the government also. Share the feedback without any hesitation if you think there is need for any improvement in policies from your experiences in view of the rapidly changing circumstances. Because this battle is such that if we all think together and come together with new ideas collectively only then we can win over it. Friends, The success of your district can set an example and help the rest of the districts. We have to adopt whatever are the best practices to deal with corona. Many of your colleagues will be in districts where corona infection is now ebbing after reaching peak. Many of your colleagues will be in districts where the battle against corona will now be easier as you strengthen your strategy by learning from your experiences. Friends, At present, the corona infection figures are going down in many states. They are also increasing in many states. Friends, we need to be more vigilant amidst the declining figures. In almost every meeting in the last one year, I have insisted that our fight is to save each and every life. Our responsibility is also to prevent the spread of infection and this is possible only if we are aware of the proper scale of the infection.It is important to constantly emphasize testing, tracking, isolation, treatment and COVID appropriate behavior. We have to pay a lot of attention to rural and remote areas in this second wave of corona. The on-field experience of all of you and your skills are going to be of great use. We also have to increase awareness in villages and link them with the facilities for treatment of COVID. In the midst of an increasing number of cases and limited resources, our greatest priority is to provide proper solutions to people’s expectations. In the midst of all the challenges, we have to make efforts keeping in mind the person at the bottom of the society. We have to strengthen the systems so that help is extended to him to alleviate his suffering. When even a single person from the administration reaches this very large section, contacts him and listens to him, his faith grows in the system. His strength to fight the disease increases manifold. As we see, when the people from the administration take oxymetre and medicines to the family living in the home isolation, enquire about them, the family members feel encouraged that they are not left alone. Friends, Apart from COVID, you also have to take care of the ‘Ease of Living’ of every citizen of your district. We have to prevent infection and simultaneously ensure uninterrupted essential supplies of daily life.Therefore, while ensuring the complete adherence to the guidelines issued for local containment zones, we also have to ensure that the poor suffer the least. No citizen should suffer. Friends, Oxygen plants are being set up at a rapid pace in hospitals in every district of the country under the PM CARES Fund. These plants have also started functioning in many hospitals. As we heard about Chandigarh just now and how beneficial it proved to be. Therefore, I request you to complete all necessary work where these plants are to be allotted so that these oxygen plants are set up quickly. The better the Oxygen Monitoring Committee works in the hospitals, oxygen will be used more properly. Friends, Vaccination is a powerful means in the fight against COVID. Therefore, we have to work together to dismiss every illusion related to it. Continuous efforts are being made to increase the supply of corona vaccines on a very large scale. The health ministry is continuously streamlining the arrangements and procedures for vaccination. The effort is that states get the schedule for the next 15 days in advance. This will also help you know how many doses of vaccines will be available for how many people in your district and you can make arrangements accordingly. You are also well aware of the proper management in preventing vaccine wastage at the district level. With your cooperation, the wastage of vaccines can be completely stopped. Not only that, we can move successfully towards optimum utilization of vaccines. Friends, Your role as an administrator as well as a human resource and logistics manager is also being tested this time. It is also very important to ensure that there are other essential supplies in adequate in your district, besides the medical supplies. We all are aware about the rainy season. As you are involved in the day-to-day affairs of the government, your attention gets diverted as the month of June approaches. Most of your focus shifts to the weather and rains. The rainy season is about to start now. So naturally you have the challenges of the rainy season which add to your burden and responsibilities. Therefore, you have to map your needs very fast and make necessary arrangements.Sometimes, there is power failure due to heavy rains. And if there is a power outage in the hospital, there will be a big crisis at such a time. So we have to think about these situations from now on. The challenge is huge, but our morale is bigger than that. Our response should be न भूतो न भविष्यति, i.e., none like this either before or after. With this spirit and resolve, we will take the country out of this crisis.The experiences that you will gain against corona now are going to be of great use to you as well as to the country in the future. You can continue to serve the country greatly by using these experiences properly. I am confident that with your cooperation, efficient leadership and management, India will move forward strongly in this fight against corona. I am happy that Chief Ministers of all the states which are participating in this meeting today also took time out. When the programme was being conceived, it was felt that there was no need to involve the Chief Ministers who are busy otherwise. But still, the Chief Ministers got themselves involved with this programme in keeping with the seriousness of the issue. It is very welcome. I also express my heartfelt gratitude to all the hon’ble Chief Ministers. All the teams of your district have to save every village from corona with a conviction and a resolve under the guidance of the respective Chief Minister. You move ahead with this mantra. May the recovery rate increase rapidly, may the number of negative cases increase rapidly and may the tests be done rapidly. While emphasizing all these points, let us not give up a single effort and experiment towards success.I can sense an element of confidence in what I have heard from you. There is experience as well as new methods. All these things instill great confidence in itself. I once again thank you all very much. You have a bigger job in hand, have to be in the field and do take care of your health and your family members. With the hope that your leadership will be of immense help in securing the health of each and every person of the area that you are looking after, thank you very much and very best wishes!