India past COVID-19 peak but second wave a possibility

NEW DELHI: A panel appointed by the Government of India stated that the country is past the coronavirus peak. The 10-member panel consisting of scientists and doctors from the Indian Council of Medical Research and the Indian Institute of Technology referred to the tapering number of cases over the last two weeks. India had reached a peak of 97,000-plus cases per day. However, 60,000 cases are getting recorded in a day now. The panellists said that the virus can be brought under control by February 2021 given that the safety measures are duly followed.

The committee said that 30 per cent of the population in India has developed immunity against SARS-CoV-2. Keeping in mind the onset of winter and the upcoming festival season, the panel warned of a fatal rise in cases if any inadvertency or laxity in COVID-19 protocol occurs.

 V K Paul, National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog, chaired the panel and referred to the possibility of a second wave of coronavirus infections. Paul, being head of the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC), commented, “Once the COVID-19 vaccine is available, there will be enough resources to deliver as well as make it accessible to the citizens.” He added that because of the winter season and the upcoming festival season, an increase in pollution in north India will mean that the coming few months are going to be a big challenge. He stressed on the importance of COVID-19 appropriate behaviour and warned that if not followed diligently, the nation could lose the gains that it has made.