DW BUREAU / Chandigarh Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Thursday directed officials to form groups of youngsters in villages to support the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The chief minister said villages are severely affected by the second wave of Covid and a strong campaign for 'corona-mukt pind' (Covid-free village) is needed. He directed the department of sports and youth affairs and the deputy commissioners to immediately form groups of seven rural corona volunteers (RCVs) per village or municipal ward as a cadre to assist in fighting the pandemic. These could work as a powerful support system for the panchayats and municipalities in the war against COVID-19, he said. Interacting with the youth from rural and urban areas through video conferencing, Singh said as a result of the support of the people, the number of daily cases in the state has come down from around 9,000 to over 4,000 in about three weeks, according to a government statement. The chief minister tasked the RCVs with taking care of the poor and elderly and connecting them to Covid control rooms and helplines, conducting 'theekri pehras' (community policing) in all villages, promoting Covid appropriate behaviour, assisting villagers in accessing adequate healthcare, and discouraging quacks. He also urged the RCVs to spread awareness among the people in rural areas on the proper protocols to be followed for Covid treatment, given the spread of black/white fungus due to high usage of steroids. The chief minister also announced that beginning Thursday, the department of youth affairs has started distributing one lakh badges and four lakh car stickers with the message "I am vaccinated", and urged the RCVs to encourage people who have received the jab to flaunt their vaccination status. As a reward for their participation, each RCV will be given a sports kit on August 12 on International Youth Day, said the chief minister directing the department to immediately commence the procurement of 15,000 kits. Expressing concern over vaccine shortage, the chief minister said the state government is trying to procure vaccines from all possible sources to meet the sudden spike in demand as more and more people were realising that this was the only protection against the pandemic, especially in view of the fast-spreading strain that originated in the UK. Meanwhile, brand ambassador of the state's Covid vaccine campaign, Sonu Sood underscored the need to create awareness amongst people especially in rural areas about the importance of vaccination. He said he will personally try to ensure maximum vaccine supply from Bharat Biotech for the state. He also evinced interest in setting up a medical oxygen plant in government hospital, Moga. (editor@dailyworld.in)