Third Wave of Corona in India: In a grim augury for Mumbaikars, Maharashtra state Minister Rajesh Tope has warned that third wave of corona will hit the state by the end of October or the first week of November as most festivities come to an end. Speaking to reporters after the state Cabinet meeting, the minister predicted that at least 60 lakh people will be infected by Covid-19 and nearly 13 lakh will likely require oxygen. Speaking exclusively to CNN-News 18, Tope asserted that the Maharashtra government has increased its oxygen capacity to 2000 MT.
On the other hand, rising daily COVID-19 cases in Kerala has kept the health officials and authorities on their toes. For the first time since May 20, Kerala logged 30,007 fresh COVID-19 cases, the second consecutive day it reported more than 30,000, and 162 deaths which pushed the total infection count in the state to 39.13 lakh and the toll to 20,134. According to the central government, 58.4 per cent of the total COVID-19 cases last week were reported from Kerala.
Among districts of the state, Ernakulam continued to record the highest numbers with 3,872 followed by Kozhikode 3,461, Thrissur 3,157, Malappuram 2,985, Kollam 2,619, Palakkad 2,261, Thiruvananthapuram 1,996, Kottayam 1,992, Kannur 1,939, Alappuzha 1,741, Pathanamthitta 1,380, Wayanad 1,161 and Idukki 900. Of the new cases, 104 were health workers, 128 were from outside the state, and 28,650 infected through contact with the source of the contact not being clear in 1,195 cases, the release said.
Threat of 3rd wave looms large: Here Are The Key Points
- The Centre has asked Kerala and Maharashtra to intensify efforts to check the spread of the virus through interventions like contact tracing and vaccination.
- Of the 46,164 fresh coronavirus cases recorded in the country in a 24-hour span, more than 30,000 were in Kerala.
- Maharashtra reported 5,108 new coronavirus cases and 159 fatalities taking the tally of infections to 64,42,788 and death toll to 1,36,730.
- Union home secretary Ajay Bhalla has reviewed the steps taken by the governments of Kerala and Maharashtra for checking the spread of COVID-19. Bhalla observed that more efforts are needed to tackle the increase in infections.
- Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who visited Kerala on August 16, announced a special package of Rs 267.35 crore for the southern state to strengthen its health infrastructure.
- He assured that the Centre would provide all possible help to the state. Besides, it was promised that an amount of Rs 1 crore would be made available to each district in Kerala to create a pool of medicines.
