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Uttar Pradesh Health Minister Jai Pratap Singh is the most sought after man with the dreaded coronavirus trying to spread its tentacles in Uttar Pradesh but he does not really know where the next challenge would come from. When everyone thought that the situation was under control in UP, the spurt in cases among Tablighi Jamaat members turned the situation upside down. Then there was demand of personal protection and tests kits which made the situation difficult for the government.
In a freewheeling interview, the health minister answered questions of The Pioneer and spoke at length on to how the Jamaat members changed the scenario and made the fight against coronavirus tougher.
Excerpts of the interview. 
The Pioneer: Uttar Pradesh seems to be grappling to contain the coronavirus which has now spread to many parts of the state. Do you believe that the government was caught napping?

Health Minister: This is a new virus which has afflicted the entire world. No country got enough time to defend itself from the pandemic. India and Uttar Pradesh were no different. Yet, from January 27, we started making arrangements. Gradually, isolation wards were set up in each district and people were quarantined. We identified two COVID hospitals in each district and 10,000 to 12,000 beds were made available in medical colleges.

Pioneer: Experts say that the best weapon is testing and this is very low compared to our population, be it in India or in Uttar Pradesh.

Minister: People do not know but it is a fact that initially all cases used to go to NIV (National Institute of Virology) in Pune for testing. Initially our medical universities were not authorised to make confirmatory tests. In the first phase, that right was given to our medical universities. Then, testing labs came up in Meerut, Gorakhpur, Agra, SGPGI, Lucknow and Aligarh. Initially testing was limited but with opening of new centres, the facility was expanded. Each testing lab has its own capacity and suspects are being tested as per the capacity.

Pioneer: But there are complaints of delay in reports.

Minister: There is no delay. All sampling is done as per chronological order. Generally it takes more than 24 hours as it is a routine. Positive cases are sent for isolation or quarantine as required and effective treatment is started immediately.

Pioneer: Do we have enough protective kits like masks, PPE (personal protection equipment)?

Minister: Initially there was scarcity of PPE and other equipment but the scarcity is not limited to UP alone, it is national and even global. Now, we are preparing PPEs and masks at our own levels. Production has started in India. When epidemic of such a magnitude hits the country, the whole nation gears up to fight against it. We did not depend on others but have started mobilising our resources. So, the paucity of kits is no longer an issue and kits are now being sent to all district hospitals.

Pioneer: Have you identified the hotspots where these kits are most required?

Minister: Yes, we have done that. There are four districts which are hot spots and we are sending equipment there on a priority. There are areas which are less endemic and equipment are on a standby. Besides, we are training doctors and paramedics. This way we have succeeded in controlling the pandemic.

Pioneer: The number of positive cases has all of a sudden gone up, Were you ready for that.

Minister: Recently, the number of cases spiked due to members of Tablighi Jamaat. Before that the situation was under control. Over 50 per cent of positive cases are because of these Jamaat people. Once we identify them, things will start levelling out. Today (Tuesday morning) out of 314 cases, 164 are Jamaat members.

Pioneer: Has this spurt put additional pressure on hospitals and doctors. Experts do not know how high this number can go.

Minister: Yes, it has. We are ready for any eventuality. We have research labs ready. COVID hospitals are ready in each districts. We are going for additional protection equipment. The government has identified many positive cases among Jamaat members and is mapping them. We are trying to identify those whom these people have met. We are putting extra vigil on Jamaat because the spurt is not that high in other cases. We hope it will settle down with time.

Pioneer: As health minister do you foresee that the lockdown can be extended after April 14.

Minister: See, this decision has to be taken by the prime minister. If experts in Delhi feel that the graph is levelling out, then lockdown can be lifted in a phased manner. Districts which have turned into hotspots could be put under lockdown for some more time and it (lockdown) could be lifted from the rest of the state. The call has to be taken by the prime minister, and the Government of India and Government of UP will decide accordingly.

Pioneer: Complaints are pouring in from paramedics and ambulance drivers about non-payment. Has it…

Minister: Look, the strike by a section of ambulance staff has nothing to do with the government. The operation of ambulances is maintained by a private company and their salary is released well in time. The service provider is supposed to pay salary to ambulance staff. About nurses, in some cases like Agra, where the number of COVID-19 positive cases went up, we are giving protection equipment to them. We are redressing problems as soon as we come to know of them.