All India Institute Of Medical Science (AIIMS) director Randeep Guleria on Saturday warned against the third wave of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) and said that it can strike the country in the next six to eight weeks, news agency PTI reported. Stressing on the need to follow Covid-19 appropriate behaviour, Guleria said that until a sizable number of the population are vaccinated people should strictly adhere to face masks and social distancing norms.
“If Covid-appropriate behaviour is not followed, the third wave can happen in six to eight weeks. We need to work aggressively to prevent another large wave till vaccination kicks in,” the news agency quoted the senior doctor as saying.
Speaking on lockdown measures as a way to control the outbreak, Guleria said it cannot be the solution keeping in view the devastating impact on the economy. On preventive measures, he suggested an aggressive surveillance strategy in Covid hotspots and lockdowns in case of any significant surge.
Referring to the multiple reports claiming that the next wave will put children in the vulnerable category, Guleria reiterated that till now, there is no evidence to suggest that.
Earlier, India’s epidemiologists indicated that the third wave of Covid-19 is inevitable and is likely to start from September-October.
After maintaining a steady decline in daily cases, India was hit by the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic in April and May. During this massive number of people succumbed to the viral infection while the number of daily cases surpassed the 400,000-mark. The number has now come to below 70,000 in the last couple of days.
According to the daily bulletin by the Union ministry of health family welfare, India reported 60,753 new cases over the last 24 hours. India’s total tally now stands at 29,823,546, while the number of active cases has come down to 7,60,019, the lowest in 74 days.
The death toll climbed to 385,137 with 1,647 fresh fatalities and active cases comprise 2.55 per cent of the total infections, while the national Covid-19 recovery rate has improved to 96.16 per cent, the data updated at 8 am showed.
