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The second wave is here | HT Editorial
Go back to the basic protocols of Covid-19 management, and open up vaccination. Doing so would remove several million people from the chain of infection
On Wednesday and Thursday, India reported 22,855 and 23,297 new Covid-19 infections respectively — setting back-to-back records for the most number of single-day cases in 2021. What started as a bottoming out of the case trajectory in the second half of February has now become a steady stream of rising infections in the past week or so, pushing the pandemic back to a case rate last seen at the end of December. And while Maharashtra may be reporting the most number of cases right now, it’s not the only state that has seen a new wave. Out of India’s 20 most populous cases, 17 states and Union Territories have seen their trajectories rise significantly after bottoming out — this list includes Punjab, Delhi, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh. The second wave is here.
The key question for all governments (states and Centre) is what can be done to fight the pandemic all over again? They would do well to remember the basics about tackling the pandemic. One of the most crucial elements that helped control the first wave was aggressive testing. Through September to November, nearly every state in the country worked at the peak of their testing capacity. Lately though, testing has dropped significantly — the testing rate in the last week in India was 40% below peak capacity levels. Restrictions on large-scale congregations and gatherings also are key to preventing the spread of the virus. Big congregations — political, religious, cultural, farmer protests, weddings, election rallies — all face risks of turning into super-spreading events. Authorities at all levels need to enforce limits on such gatherings.
India needs to throw open its vaccination drive – both by making more people eligible, as well as by approving more vaccines. Right now, only those who remain most vulnerable to the virus are being vaccinated. To be sure, in the past two weeks, there has been progress in the rate of vaccination. But while this is a good start, it is time to expand the eligibility criteria to include younger people — after all, they are the ones most mobile, and most likely to be the ones spreading the virus. Doing so would remove several million people from the chain of infection. Throwing more vaccines into the mix will also enhance options, and ensure that the drive is not limited by any manufacturer’s production constraints.
