Festive months crucial: Govt warns of Covid-19 pandemic surge

With people getting ready to celebrate festivals, starting from Navratri and Dussehra to Diwali and Christmas, health ministry warned that threat of Covid resurgence still existed

The government on Thursday advised extreme caution during the festive season, saying the next three months were crucial in the fight against Covid-19.
 
With people getting ready to celebrate festivals, starting from Navratri and Dussehra to Diwali and Christmas, the health ministry warned that the threat of Covid resurgence still existed. “The pandemic can take an untoward turn if we are not careful. We have to watch out for the next three months,” said V K Paul, member, health, NITI Aayog.
 
The ministry cited examples of countries, including Russia and the Netherlands, where a spike in cases was seen after mass gatherings in certain public events.
 
Around 71 per cent of India’s adult population have received the first dose of the Covid vaccine, while 27 per cent have got both jabs. Five states are still lagging with less than 60 per cent first dose coverage. They are Jharkhand, West Bengal, Manipur, Nagaland, and Meghalaya.
 
“The coverage is uneven in the country of our size. State governments are making their efforts. Supply issues are being seen. It is a matter of time, all states will have good coverage,” Paul said.

He ensured that there were no issues with the availability of vaccines in the country now. Training is being provided for administering the Zydus vaccine, which is administered through an applicator and not a needle. “It is the first time that this applicator will be used in the country. We are building master trainers. Logistics issues are being solved and soon this vaccine will be part of our vaccination,” Paul said.  He said Covishield and Covaxin were the mainstays of India’s vaccination, and the roll-out of Sputnik was going on. “Because the pandemic is raging in Russia, there was a delay in supply but tech transfer and production is going as planned,” Paul said.

He also said while there was no formula to predict the surge that could be expected in future and its peak, the preparedness of the country was pitched to handle a surge of 450,000 to 500,000 cases.
 
“Cases are happening even with vaccination, though we know vaccines reduce transmission. We are watching the situation and science. Our preparation is so we can feel safe. We have to ensure there is no surge,” Paul said.
 
The ministry said while overall positivity across the country gives comfort, there are still a large number of districts reporting high case positivity. Thirty-four districts in India are reporting more than a 10 per cent weekly positivity rate while 28 districts are witnessing a weekly positivity between 5 and 10 per cent.