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Lockdown in Kerala begins, CM Vijayan says situation tough
Thiruvananthapuram: In a bid to contain the Covid surge, the Kerala government imposed an eight-day lockdown from Saturday
Thiruvananthapuram: In a bid to contain the Covid surge, the Kerala government imposed an eight-day lockdown from Saturday. The curbs will remain in place still May 16. The state on Saturday recorded a high of 41,971 cases with a test positivity rate (TPR) of 28.25%.
Addressing mediapersons through a virtual meet chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday said the second wave was really challenging and the government will do everything possible to save lives. “Situation is really tough during the second wave. Though we face shortage of doses we started vaccinating people below 45 years. The government is keeping a strict tab on oxygen situation and availability of hospital beds,” he said. In the morning he held a series of meetings with heads of various departments to spruce up the ongoing fight against the pandemic.
“Experts say in the second phase of virus strain is deadly. So we all will have to take extra caution,” he said requesting people to remain at home and follow directives of the state health ministry in letter and spirit.
Experts have warned recently that the double mutant variant or SARS-COV2 lineage B.1. 617 is found to be prevalent here. They said it was almost similar to the one reported in Maharashtra (Amaravati strain) and it was at least twice infectious as earlier variants. Earlier the state had confirmed the presence of mutant strains from United Kingdom and South Africa. Experts said the double mutant variant is dangerous than UK and African variants.
As cases soar the government imposed a complete down as the weekend restrictions and curbs failed to check the rising graph. This will be extended till May 16 midnight and the government said it is likely to be extended further after gauging the situation. Around 25,000 additional policemen have been deployed to ensure adherence to lockdown norms.
