Chennai, Dec 22 (IANS): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Thursday directed the ministers and officials to tighten up the guard against Covid -19, which is on a rise in several countries.

In a high-level meeting at the seat of power -- the Secretariat, the Chief Minister asked the officials to be alert and ensure safety measures in crowded places given the arrival of tourists during the festive season.

Notably, Covid cases in China, South Korea, France, and the United Kingdom are witnessing a surge. China has reported 1.48 lakh fresh cases and around 480 deaths recently.

The Tamil Nadu state Public health department has already written to the Union Health Ministry for mandatory tests at the international airports for passengers arriving from China and Hong Kong.

During the meeting, Chief Minister Stalin also reviewed the existing situation of beds, oxygen beds, availability of medicines, and other infrastructure in the state.

It has been learnt that the health department officials have informed the Chief Minister that 97 per cent of the people of the state have taken the first dose of Covid-19 vaccine and 92 per cent have been inoculated with the second dose and hence the possibility of a major surge of the pandemic in the state is unlikely.

It may be noted that India has reported four cases of Omicron BF.7 sub-variant which is the main cause of the Covid surge in China and other countries.