Prime minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting on Covid-19 and influenza to review the country’s response and preparedness to deal with a rising number of cases of influenza and a slight increase in the number of Covid-19 cases.

The Prime Minister directed officials to enhance genome sequencing while also emphasising on the need to ensure people strictly adhere to Covid-appropriate behavior, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

In the week ended March 22, India reported a daily average of 888 cases according to the Union health ministry, with a positivity rate of 0.98%.

The numbers are not alarming by themselves and some experts believe that more people are testing themselves because of a flu virus that is going around, and that some of them are testing positive for Covid-19. According to the latest genome sequencing data from INSACOG, the consortium of labs responsible for genome sequencing in India, the dominant strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus doing the rounds now is XBB, which is believed to be highly infectious, but not lethal.

“Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today chaired a high-level meeting to assess the Covid-19 and Influenza situation in the country in terms of preparedness of health infrastructure and logistics, status of the vaccination campaign, emergence of new Covid-19 variants and Influenza types and their public health implications for the country,” read the PMO statement.

On Wednesday India recorded 1,134 new coronavirus cases and five deaths.

Doctors are more concerned by influenza, which has laid many people low, sometimes for as long as a month, primarily because of their lower immunity following an attack of Covid-19. Flu shots are also not common in India, although doctors have been encouraging people to take an annual one.

During the meeting, the health secretary, Rajesh Bhushan, made a comprehensive presentation covering the global Covid situation .

The prime minister also reviewed the progress made since the last review meeting on December 22, 2022. He was informed that availability and prices of 20 main Covid drugs, 12 other drugs, eight buffer drugs and one influenza drug were being monitored.

The prime minister was apprised on the influenza situation in the country particularly with respect to higher number of cases of H1N1 and H3N2 being noted in last few months.

Modi directed officials to enhance whole genome sequencing of positive samples with the designated INSACOG genome sequencing laboratories.

The prime minister emphasized the need to ensure Covid-appropriate behaviour including wearing of masks in hospital premises by both patients, health professionals, and health workers. He also stressed that wearing of masks is advisable when senior citizens and those with co-morbidities visit crowded areas.

“In my clinical practice, almost all my patients acquired infections by going to large gatherings, flights etc. where there is high potential for exposure. The susceptible population, especially elderly and immunocompromised, should avoid crowded places and take flu vaccine in time,” said Dr GC Khilnani, chairman, PSRI Institute of Pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine.

New Delhi: The Union government on Wednesday told the Delhi high court that confining the recruitment for the Judge Advocate General (JAG), the legal officer in the army, to unmarried men and women is a “reasonable restriction placed in public interest and the interest of national security”.

Explaining the rationale behind the policy barring married individuals from applying for JAG, the government in an affidavit filed before the court said the cadets have to undergo a high amount of stress and rigours of military training and the restriction on marriage before successful commission is in the interest of the candidates as well as organisation.

“Having regard to the effects of marriage, the bar of marriage is a reasonable restriction placed in public interest and national security…due to such thought of policy governing the entry of males and females in Indian Army, either men or women officers, do not require them to resign or give up their service due to marriage or marriage related natural consequences if they get married after completion of training and are granted commission,” the Centre said in its latest affidavit.

A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sachin Datta was hearing a petition by lawyer Kush Kalra, who challenged the exclusion of married individuals from applying for the post. On Wednesday, the court granted time to the petitioner to file his response to the Centre’s stand and posted the matter for hearing on July 17.

During the previous hearing in the case last year, the court had asked the Centre to file an additional affidavit detailing the rationale to exclude married men and women in JAG.

The government in its affidavit said there is no discrimination between men and women in the army, adding that military training is compulsory for all recruits before enrolment, irrespective of the arm and service they belong to.

“In all types of entries, unmarried clause is common… in the Indian Army both males and females are treated equally and granted equal opportunity in all service conditions and benefits,” it said. “The condition of being unmarried for both male and female candidates aged between 21-27 years for grant of commission is restricted only for the period of recruitment and pre-commissioned training which involves a high amount of physical and mental stress, strain and rigours of military training.”

The affidavit further said that once unmarried lady cadets and gentlemen cadets complete their training and are granted commission, “there is no bar for getting married or its natural consequences of pregnancy etc and service benefits viz. maternity leave, child care leave, paternity leave or married accommodation etc.”

During conduct of Basic Military Training, which lasts for a minimum one year, such provisions are not possible, it said. “Since pregnancy and giving birth to a child is considered as natural right for a woman and she cannot be deprived of that, while formulating the rules such precautionary conditions have been laid down in the interest of women candidates themselves,” the Centre said in its reply.

“With regard to male officers, the answering respondents, without prejudice, respectfully submit that the rigor of training and initial years of service do not permit an officer to get married during training or to address certain requirements of married life to include situations of emergency,” it added.

Absence of more than three weeks during training leads to the cadets losing a term and being relegated to a junior term and further absence leads to discharge, the government informed the court.

“Thus, the prohibition of marriage during training period and before successful commission is felt to be a reasonable restriction put in the interest of the candidates as well as organisation,” it added.

In the PIL, petitioner Kush Kalra, who was represented by advocate Charu Wali Khanna, has termed as “institutionalised discrimination” the restriction on married individuals from being considered for JAG.

The petition has questioned the basis for barring married individuals from joining JAG, citing that marital status is not an eligibility criterion for the “equally ranked” judiciary and civil services.

In its earlier affidavit filed in March 2019, the government said that right to marry cannot be a right to life under the Constitution and there was no discrimination on the basis of marital status of the candidates.

JAG is the legal advisor to the chief of the army staff in matters of military, martial and international law, the plea has said. It has sought that the special army instructions of 1992 and 2017, which disentitle married women and married men, respectively, from applying for JAG be declared as void.