Thiruvananthapuram: As the Supreme Court on Monday directed the Kerala government to file its response to a petition against three-day relaxation in Covid-19 restrictions in view of the upcoming Bakrid celebrations, Kerala reported 9,931 new cases and an increase in its test positivity rate (TPR) to 11.08% , its highest in the last 17 days.
The government’s decision to relax pandemic norms for Bakrid when virus infections are increasing have provoked criticism in Kerala and beyond. On Monday, a petition was filed in the Supreme Court questioning the relaxation. The court is expected to take up the plea on Tuesday.
In the last 24 hours, 89,654 samples were tested and 9,931 tested positive with a TPR of 11.03%, said the state health ministry.
At 1,21,708, Kerala has the highest active caseload in the country.
Kerala’s TPR has been hovering around the 10% mark for days as compared to the national rate of 3%. Kerala has been the only state to consistently report around 10,000 cases daily.
“Kerala’s disease progression pattern is very peculiar. The state will have to increase vaccination drastically to contain the present surge. Its policies helped slow down progression to an extent but a large chunk of people are still susceptible,” said Dr Sreejith N Kumar, a public health expert.
Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has announced a series of relaxations for three days starting Sunday in view of Eid celebrations, a move that has been hugely criticised. At least 40 people will be allowed in places of worship and shops and business establishments can be opened till 8 pm. And the number of pilgrims in Sabarimala hill temple was also doubled from 5,000 to 10,000.
{{/usCountry}}Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has announced a series of relaxations for three days starting Sunday in view of Eid celebrations, a move that has been hugely criticised. At least 40 people will be allowed in places of worship and shops and business establishments can be opened till 8 pm. And the number of pilgrims in Sabarimala hill temple was also doubled from 5,000 to 10,000.
{{/usCountry}}Besides concessions for Bakrid, certain activities like film shooting and relaxations for places of worship were announced by the CM, who said that restrictions were also needed to overcome the serious situation that Kerala was facing. Many experts and bodies such as the Indian Medical Association have lambasted the government, calling the relaxations “ill-timed and inappropriate”.
The issue has also sparked a debate online and many drew comparisons to the cancellation of the ‘kanwar yatra’ by Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. But the government maintained that concessions were only for shops and some people with vested interests had blown them out of proportion.
Meanwhile 50 students of the Thrissur medical college hospital have tested positive for Covid-19, affecting normal work of the hospital, said district medical authorities. More than 100 other students who came in contact with the infected have been asked to go in quarantine. Among the infected, 40 are MBBS students and 10 post-graduate students.