Vaccination of sanitation workers within the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) limits commenced today (February 15), says Dr. Sudarshani Fernandopulle, the State Minister of Primary Healthcare, Epidemics, and COVID Disease Control.

Speaking to media at the Ministry today, Fernandopulle said that it has been decided to vaccinate high-risk groups and the communities in high-risk areas as a priority.

She pointed out that the majority of coronavirus cases have been identified from Colombo and Gampaha Districts.

The State Minister further said that the vaccination process can be further regulated when Sri Lanka receives the vaccine doses provided under the COVAX program of the World Health Organization (WHO).

Speaking on the rumors of a lockdown in the country due to the detection of new COVID-19 variants within Sri Lanka, she said that there is no such need to lockdown the country as of yet.

Stating that the new variants have been identified mostly in patients who arrived from foreign countries, Fernandopulle said that the Epidemiology Unit is currently studying these patients who have all been quarantined or sent for treatment.

“We were able to identify patients with the new variant because we were vigilant about this. We had informed the people about this that new varieties could emerge in the future.

The important thing now is to control that cluster without allowing it to spread. All necessary steps have been taken for that. We see that people also display risky behavior. They get together without masks. Crowds gather through weddings.

There is no need to lockdown the country. There is no increase in the number of patients reported. No new guidelines are needed to control the situation. It is sufficient to follow the guidelines already issued.”