‘Covid third wave inevitable… we should be prepared’: Centre’s top scientific advisor

[Kool_SRG]

On Wednesday, India reported a record 3,780 fresh Covid fatalities in the last 24 hours. The Health Ministry officials said the long Covid wave of such "ferocity" that the country was experiencing currently "was not predicted".

 

Even as India grapples with the ferocious second wave of Covid-19, the government Wednesday warned that a third wave of the pandemic was “inevitable”, although a time-frame for it could not be predicted.

“Phase three is inevitable given the higher levels of circulating virus, but it is not clear on what time-scale this phase three will occur. We should be prepared for new waves,” K Vijay Raghavan, the principal scientific advisor to the Centre, said during a press briefing.

On Wednesday, India reported a record 3,780 fresh Covid fatalities in the last 24 hours, taking the overall death toll to 2,26,188. As many as 3,82,315 new coronavirus infections were also recorded at the same time.

Raghavan further pointed out that vaccines are effective against the current variants. “New variants will arise all over the world, as well as India, but variants that increase transmission will likely plateau,” he said, adding that immune-evasive variants and those which lower or increase disease severity will arise going ahead.

 Health workers inspect COVID-19 patients undergoing treatment at Shehnai Banquet Hall, converted into an isolation center amid a surge in coronavirus cases, near LNJP Hospital in New Delhi. (Express Photo By Amit Mehra)

“Scientists in India and all over the world are working to anticipate these kinds of variants and act against them rapidly by issuing early warnings and developing modified tools,” he said.

The Health Ministry officials also said that the long Covid wave of such “ferocity” that the country was experiencing currently “was not predicted”.

On being asked if a nationwide lockdown was the only solution to rise in cases, NITI Aayog member Dr V K Paul said there was already a guideline issued to states to impose restrictions to suppress the chain of transmission. He added that more options will be discussed in case of a necessity.

The Health Ministry, meanwhile, said 12 states, including Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and Uttar Pradesh have over 1 lakh active cases. It further said that Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Bihar are among the states that have shown an increasing trend in daily cases.

 A Covid patient waits in an ambulance outside LNJP Hospital in New Delhi. (Express Photo by Praveen Khanna)

The government also said that 24 states and Union Territories show more than 15 per cent Covid positivity rate. A rise in Covid deaths has also been reported in a few states including Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, and Haryana, the government said.

The Health Ministry also said that the liberalised policy for vaccination started on May 1, under which, 1, 6.71 lakh people in the age group of 18-44 years in nine states have been administered the vaccines.

Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal, meanwhile, informed that the foreign aid coming from abroad is being monitored by a group of senior officials at the ministry and additional secretary level.

“Our technical wing has made guidelines to see that what hospital would the equipment be suitable for. The equipment is being sent to hospitals where an immediate need has been felt,” he said.

[Kool_SRG]

Third Wave of Coronavirus Inevitable, We Need to be Prepared: Govt

The Union Health Ministry said it is not clear on what time scale the third phase would occur, adding that vaccines are effective against the new variants of the virus.

The government said on Wednesday a third phase of the coronavirus pandemic was “inevitable", but it is not clear on what time scale this phase would occur and hence, we should be prepared for the same. The Union Health Ministry held a briefing on the current COVID-10 situation and the vaccination programme underway in the country. Senior officials said the long COVID wave of such “ferocity" that the country was experiencing currently “was not predicted". Twelve states, including Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and Uttar Pradesh, have more than 1 lakh active COVID cases, the government said.

Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Bihar are among the states that show an increasing trend in daily cases, it said. The government also said that 24 states and UTs show more than 15 per cent COVID positivity rate.

Officials said there are some areas of concern, like Bengaluru reporting around 1.49 lakh cases in last one week. Some districts, including Kozhikode, Ernakulam and Gurugram, have recorded a rapid spread of cases. An increase in deaths has also been noticed too with Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, and Haryana reporting more fatalities.

“Phase three is inevitable given the higher levels of circulating virus, but it is not clear on what time-scale this phase three will occur. We should be prepared for new waves," said K Vijay Raghavan, the principal scientific advisor to the Centre. Stating that new variants of the virus are more transmissible, Raghavan said these strains infect humans in a manner that make them more transmissible “as it gains entry, makes more copies and goes on, same as original."

He said scientists across the world are working to anticipate the new variants and act against them rapidly by early warning and developing modified tools. “It’s an intense research program, happening in India and abroad," he said, adding that vaccines are effective against current variants.

From May 1, 6.71 lakh people in the age group of 18-44 years in nine states have been administered the vaccines, it added. NITI Aayog member (Health) Dr VK Paul requested “physicians’ fraternity" to come forward and provide teleconsultations to people and families at home who are infected with coronavirus.

“The response to the changing virus remains the same. We need to follow the COVID- appropriate behaviour such as mask, distancing, hygiene, no unnecessary meetings and staying at home," Dr Paul said. In reply to a question, he said that the disease is not spreading through animals, but through human to human transmission.

Union Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said that the foreign aid coming from abroad is being monitored by a group of senior officials. “Our technical wing has made guidelines to see that what hospital would the equipment be suitable for. The equipment is being sent to hospitals where an immediate need has been felt," he said. Agarwal also said that 11 districts in Maharashtra are showing continuous decline in COVID cases since the last 14 days, while some districts like Satara and Solapur show a continued increase in such cases over the last two weeks. He also said that the government is making continuous efforts to build capacities of all healthcare facilities across the country.

The government further said the UK variant (B.1.1.7) of the virus is showing a declining trend, while the double mutant (B1.617 lineage) has been seen in Maharashtra.