Exhausted govt machinery may be behind Kerala's Covid-19 cases rise

Centre to send six-member team; state announces weekend lockdown

From being held up as a model state for its Covid-19 control during the first wave of the pandemic, Kerala is contributing to nearly half the cases reported nationally, drawing criticism from experts and the Opposition on the way the state has tackled the second wave.
 
Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Thursday said the Centre would send a six-member high-level multidisciplinary team to the state to assess the situation there. The team will be headed by Dr S K Singh, director, National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).
 
The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) too expressed concern over the