Festival rush raises concern over Covid spread in Punjab again

Mohali, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Amritsar and Patiala being seen as more vulnerable as they witnessed a huge rush in last week when number of people getting inoculated in Punjab came down

With Covid-19 norms being violated blatantly across Punjab during the Diwali festivities as heavy rush of people was seen in markets and other public places, the health department has raised concern over spread of the pandemic in the state once again.

The Punjab health department has decided to step up testing and inoculate those who have not received the Covid vaccine yet.

The cities of Mohali, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Amritsar and Patiala are being seen as more vulnerable as they witnessed an unprecedented rush in the past one week when the number of people getting inoculated with vaccine also came down.

The department has decided to step up testing and inoculate those who have not received the Covid vaccine yet.

As per official figures, at least 80% population has received the first dose while 40% have been administered the second dose. The remaining unvaccinated population (20%) is the most vulnerable to virus infection, experts said.

“We will ask people to get tested for the virus infection in case they have any of the symptoms. The state was the worst-hit in the second phase of the pandemic when people in cities, towns and rural pockets were badly affected,” said state Covid-19 nodal officer Dr Rajesh Bhaskar.

“In the view of the festival season, various agencies have predicted the onset of the third wave of virus by November-end,” Bhaskar added.

A day after Diwali on Friday, there were 219 active cases of infection and 17 new cases in the state with 2,600 people getting the vaccine. Of the 602,496 people tested positive for Covid-19 in the state since the outbreak of coronavirus, 585,715 have recovered. The death count has reached 16,562.

State health director Dr Andesh Kang said the department is taking all steps to keep the spread of infection under check. “The number of people getting positive has decreased significantly but we can’t lower our guard. The department is monitoring the situation closely,” she added.

35,000 samples being collected daily

The department is collecting nearly 35,000 samples every day, particularly in schools, hospitals and other public places, Dr Bhaskar said. Mansa district reported no Covid case for at least 10 days with 10-12 districts witnessing zero case on the daily basis. Gurdaspur, Muktsar and Tarn Taran districts have recorded positivity rate even less than the state’s average of 0.1%.

The majority of the tests being conducted are RT-PCR, said another department official, adding that an average 1 lakh vaccine doses are being administered daily.

“Earlier, the daily vaccination number was 2.5-3 lakh which came down due to the festival and the ongoing paddy procurement. We will increase the number again,” he said.

With the World Health Organization (WHO) giving approval to Covaxin vaccine, the immunization rate in Punjab is expected to pick up in the coming days, say experts.