New Delhi, India : The daily cases ofinfected people from Covid-19 crossed the 2000-mark second time this week in India. There were more than 2050 new infections in the last 24 hours and 30+ deaths related to covid was also reported.
In the capital city, Delhi, more than 1000 new cases were reported. In regard to this sudden rise, the Delhi government has decided to make masks mandatory. Rupees 500 will be deducted as a fine in case of violations.
On the other hand, the DDMA(Delhi Disaster Management Authority) has decided to keep the schools open for the time being and there will be SOPs(Standard Operating Procedures) for them. Though public gatherings are not banned yet, they will be followed thoroughly. In spite of the increase in cases and the centre pressing for better vaccination drive, the number of vaccines administered in Delhi are still pretty low. As the city reached a saturation point in the middle of February, the vaccination process was taken down. More than 90 percent of the adult people were already vaccinated then.
Butthe cases suddenly began to rise right after the second dose vaccination for children in the age group of 15-17 and again after the drive for children from 12 to 14. Presently the second category is provided the highest number of vaccines. Surprisingly, the hospital authorities are almost nonchalant about this rise.
Thepositivity rate in Delhi crossed 7 percent with these rapid cases. It is heavily contrasted with the overall positivity rate of India which is not even 1 percent, according to the Union health ministry. Infections disease expert of US notes that this rise can possibly be due to fatigue of pandemic, higher transmission rate of coronavirus and looser restrictions.
In the latest meeting of DDMA, chaired by the state’s governor and attended by the ChiefMinister, Chief Secretary, Deputy Chief Minister, AIIMSDirector, NCDC Director and other officers, it was decided to ensure strict guidelines for covid, enhance the number of testing and be more attentive towards the vaccination of the targeted groups. The schools are following different precautionary measures like frequent sanitizations to reduce the spread of the virus to a minimum. The government has ordered school authorities to report every case to the department of education and close particular wings or classrooms wherever any teacher or student has been found infected.The parents are divided into two groups where one group suggests that schools should go into hybrid mode(online and offline classes as per convenience) and the other is in support of offline classes. Some are even suggesting of going back to online mode because many schools are being dishonest about infections of students or staff in the school premises and putting the rest at risk. Apart from Delhi, there have also been new cases in Madhya Pradesh and Punjab made wearing masks mandatory in public placesagain due to the rise.
The Covid-19 vaccination coverage of India has recently crossed185 crores. Among that, more than 2 crore 1st dose vaccines were assigned for children from 12-14.Although the possibility of a fourth wave is low, essential measures are being taken to stop further spread of the disease in the areas which are prone to more damage.