Centre 'prepared' to tackle up to 5 lakh Covid-19 cases a day

Health Ministry joint secretary Lav Agarwal said that the government was leaving no stone unturned to ensure full preparedness to tackle any surge

India prepares to handle a daily caseload of 4.5-5 lakh Covid-19 patients in the third wave if it ever comes, a top government official said here on Thursday, observing that more than two million beds are available to deal with any such emergency.

The official, however, noted that such a peak in the talked about third wave was unlikely as more than 70% of the adult population had been vaccinated with a single dose of the Covid-19 vaccine and more than a quarter of Indian adults is fully vaccinated.

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“Our preparedness is pitched for a surge of 450,000 to 500,000 daily cases,” V K Paul, NITI Ayog member and the government’s principal advisor on Covid-19 said. “But this does not mean we’re saying that will happen or can happen or may happen. No. It should not and won’t reach those levels under current seropositivity, vaccine protection, and Covid-appropriate behaviour.”

On May 16, India registered 4.14 fresh infections, reaching the peak of the ferocious second surge that witnessed large scale Covid deaths all over the country.

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In July, the Indian Council of Medical Research released the results of a nationwide survey showing 67% of India’s population had become seropositive -- or acquired possibly protective antibodies against Covid-19 through the natural infection. Such a large proportion of seropositive individuals implies that the pool of people susceptible to the infection has shrunk.

On the vaccination front, more than 93 crore doses have been administered till Thursday covering 71% of India’s 94.47 crore adult population with a single dose and 27% with both doses.

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Both factors are likely to play a key role in lowering the peak in the third wave of Covid-19 infection if it ever comes after the Dasara-Diwali-Chhath festivities. The Union Health Ministry asked people to follow Covid-appropriate behaviour over the next three months and try to observe the festivities in a distant mode.

As a preparedness measure, the government has kept 8.36 lakh hospital beds available along with 9.7 lakh isolation beds, 4.86 lakh oxygen supported beds and 1.35 lakh ICU beds. Also around 1,600, oxygen generation plants have been commissioned to produce 2,100 MT of oxygen and more such units are in the offing.

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