People must learn to live with the virus, follow prevention guidelines: Govt

"We have to learn to live with the virus," the government said on Friday, urging people to make COVID-19 prevention guidelines a part of their lives as a behavioural change amid easing of lockdown restrictions and migrant labourers returning home.

Addressing a press conference, joint secretary in the health ministry Lav Agarwal said there has been a reduction in the doubling time of COVID-19 cases in the country from 12 days till two days ago to 10 now because of the spike in cases at some places, even as he asserted that the peak of the disease can be avoided if the prescribed dos and don'ts are followed.

"As we talk of relaxations to the lockdown and of migrant workers returning back to their respective homes, there is a big challenge in front of us that we also have to learn to live with the virus, he said.

And when we are talking about learning to live with the virus then it is very important that the guidelines that are there on saving oneself from the virus are adopted in the community as a behavioural change," Agarwal said.

It is a big challenge and the government needs community support for it, he said.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had also recently said people will have to be ready to live with the novel coronavirus and that time has come to re-open the city, as the government announced certain relaxations.

Giving district-wise situation of coronavirus cases, Agarwal said there are 216 districts in which no COVID-19 case has been reported till date.

The health ministry on May 1 classified 733 districts in the country as 130 in the red zone, 284 in the orange zone and 319 in the green zone, taking into consideration incidence of cases of COVID-19, doubling rate, extent of testing and surveillance feedback.

Forty-two districts have had no fresh cases in the last 28 days while 29 districts have reported no new cases of COVID-19 in the last 21 days. Also, 36 districts have not registered any fresh cases in the last 14 days and 46 districts have had no fresh cases in the last seven days, he said.

Asked about AIIMS Delhi Director, Dr Randeep Guleria's remarks citing modelling data that the peak of the disease in India may be reached in June or July, Agarwal said, If we follow the prescribed dos and don'ts, we may not reach the peak in number of COVID-19 cases and our curve may remain flat.

If the precautions are not taken and guidelines are not followed properly, there can be chances of spike in cases, he warned, stressing that community support and field action should continue so that the country does not reach the peak
He said 3.2 per cent of total active COVID-19 cases are on oxygen support, 4.2 per cent in ICU and 1.1 per cent on ventilator: