Parliament speakers, MPs mask-up amid concern over Covid variant from China

Amid a fresh Covid-19 threat due to the surge of cases in China, Parliament on Thursday saw the return of the mask mandate.

Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla were seen wearing a mask as proceedings began today. Some other MPs were also masked-up in the Parliament Houses.

As the proceedings began, the Lok Sabha speaker advised parliamentarians to wear a mask and spread awareness about Covid-appropriate behaviour. “We should be vigilant keeping in mind the past trends of the pandemic,” he told the members, reported news agency PTI.

Birla also announced that masks have been made available for MPs at the gates.

The coronavirus threat has repositioned itself at the center of India’s health map as China is witnessing a massive surge in Covid cases and is predicted to cause several deaths in the country.

On Wednesday, the central government advised people to get vaccinated and mask up and announced that random sample testing will be conducted at airports for passengers arriving from China and other countries – after Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya reviewed the Covid-19 situation at a meeting with experts.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair a high-level review meeting at 3.30 pm on Thursday to review the Covid-19 situation in the country.

So far, India has detected four cases of the BF.7 variant – which is the primary factor in the increasing cases in China. However, according to experts, there is no need to panic since all the patients have been recovered.