New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday spoke to chief ministers of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu on the COVID-19 situation in their states, government sources said.
Modi has been interacting with various chief ministers over telephone for the last couple of days to take stock of the pandemic situation in their states.
In tweets, the office of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said Modi expressed satisfaction over the declining infection rate in the state and assured Chouhan of all possible help from the Centre.
Chouhan informed the prime minister about various efforts being undertaken by the state to fight the pandemic and thanked him for the Centre's support.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur also tweeted about his interaction with Modi.
According to the latest update, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh reported 11,708 and 4,177 COVID-19 cases respectively in a day.
Maharashtra, which recorded 54,022 new cases of COVID-19 in a day, has been the worst-affected state during the second wave of the infections.
A statement issued by the Maharashtra Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said that during their talk, Thackeray reiterated the demand for adequate oxygen supply to the state.
Modi acknowledged that the state has been fighting the second wave of the pandemic well, it said.
Thackeray said his government has been benefiting from Modi's guidance in the fight against the virus from the beginning, and pointed out that the Centre has also accepted various suggestions made by the state government.
Meanwhile, Thackeray has also written a letter to Modi urging the central government to allow states to develop their own applications for COVID-19 vaccination programme. Thackeray wrote that the vaccine supply was also a major challenge.
"If possible, the state is willing to procure the requisite stock of vaccines in a single procurement. However, the producers do not have enough stocks. If the states are allowed to procure vaccines from other manufacturers as well, a large population would be covered in a shorter time and help reduce the impact of a possible third wave," the CM said. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin took office on Friday and has now announced complete lockdown across the state to curb the rising cases.