India Sees A Rise In COVID Cases, How Should The Country Aim To Tackle It, Experts Speak | Coronavirus Outbreak
Highlights
- India has started to witness the second wave of coronavirus
- Situation in India is going from bad to worse: Government
- India should look at door-to-door vaccination programme: Expert
New Delhi: As India continues to witness an increase in the daily new cases of COVID-19 since February, NDTV speaks with experts to know the way ahead for the country. Currently, India has the second-highest number of COVID infections in the world recorded in the period of 24 hours. The Government says that it is not because of the novel mutant strains reported around the world and has warned people that the coronavirus situation in India is going from bad to worse.
So, if the surge is not because of the new strains then what exactly accounts for this second wave given the fact that lack of COVID behaviour was always the reality. As per the recently published report by the State Bank of India (SBI) the second wave may last up to 100 days, when counted from February 15. The report also stated that considering the number of days from the current level of daily new cases to the peak level during the first wave, India might reach the peak in the second half of April. It said, “Localised lockdowns or restrictions have been ineffective and mass vaccination is the only hope to win the battle against the pandemic.”
Speaking about the surge in cases and what strategies India should follow to cope up with the spurt, Dr Shashank Joshi, Member Maharashtra COVID Task Force said,
Right now, we are investigating the sudden spurt in COVID cases. The point to know here is that whether or not the rise in the cases is because of the new strains, the strategies to cope up with the surge won’t change. We need to do aggressive masking and follow COVID appropriate behaviour. One thing is sure that this second wave is a rapidly transferable strain, and its behaviour is different from what we have experienced earlier.
On the other hand, speaking about gene sequencing and should India be doing it more rapidly to know what strain is responsible for this surge, Dr Ram Vishwakarma, Chairman COVID Strategy Group, Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) added,
Yes, more and more sequencing is required. Several CSIR laboratory and other ICMR (Indian Council Of Medical Research) laboratory and institutions are working tirelessly to do this. However, we also need to understand that it requires a very specialised effort. Also, we need to know that sequencing alone will not work. If you have sequencing it doesn’t establish that if the disease is spreading faster or slower. It is an analysis, to know what strain is affecting the rise, we need to have clinical evidence, correlation of that variant with clinical symptoms and currently that all is work in progress.
Dr Vishwakarma also said that instead of focusing on the number of gene sequencing, India needs to follow strategic sequencing. He added,
This means, people who have got one or double dose of vaccine and still getting the infection again, we need to do sequencing for them first. For people who are in the COVID clusters where cases are high, we also need to target them. Random sequencing won’t work and tell us what the cause of the surge or what strain is responsible for this.
Talking about the difference seen in this wave as compared to the one the country saw last year, Dr TP Lahane, Director Medical Research Maharashtra said,
If you see now, there is a shift – the patients who are in the age group of 20-30 are getting infected more. The second thing we have seen now is that the families are getting infected at a higher rate than before.
Dr TP Lahane also spoke about the existing vaccines and if they work against the strain. He said,
Currently both the vaccines are reasonably safe and at least Covaxin is very clear that it works against the mutant, they have data also that has been published. As far as Covidshield is concerned, it has worked against the UK and South Africa strain, so there is some data to suggest that some of that might work. But of course, this is work in progress and every vaccine will evolve as the mutants will be coming out.
Also Read: Mutations Are Not Riding The Current Surge Of COVID-19 In India: Dr VK Paul, NITI Aayog
Dr Vishwakarma also suggested the same and said that there is no doubt that vaccines will work. He added,
The good thing about the vaccines that are approved globally is the fact that they all protect you from the severity of the disease. Now, I think, we should start thinking about universal vaccination programme, we should move towards clinical trials for knowing the efficacy of the vaccines on the paediatric population.
When asked if a door-to-door vaccination programme should be looked at to tackle the sudden surge, Dr TP Lahane said,
It does make sense, however, we still need to figure out logistics. We are asking the central government for the permit of a door-to-door vaccination programme. Once we amp up the vaccination, our aim is to go for it. What is happening is that currently, patients are not coming. Secondly, the centres are itself the source of infections so if we go for the door-to-door vaccination, I think it will definitely help.
Dr Vishwakarma agreed that there are few logistic issues with the door-to-door vaccination programme like observing the patient for 30 minutes after the vaccination, he said,
If we start doing this door-to-door vaccination programme randomly it won’t be of any use. What is required is that it should be back with the data, we should go for clusters and people who are at higher risk and then look at the logistics and figure out a viable solution. What we need to do is try and get this virus out of the country as soon as possible, otherwise, it will keep mutating and growing.
NDTV – Dettol Banega Swasth India campaign is an extension of the five-year-old Banega Swachh India initiative helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. It aims to spread awareness about critical health issues facing the country. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign highlights the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children to prevent maternal and child mortality, fight malnutrition, stunting, wasting, anaemia and disease prevention through vaccines. Importance of programmes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Mid-day Meal Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyan and the role of Aganwadis and ASHA workers are also covered. Only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and become a Swasth or healthy India. The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene.
World
12,88,63,830Cases
5,29,67,186Active
7,30,81,286Recovered
28,15,358Deaths
Coronavirus has spread to 192 countries. The total confirmed cases worldwide are 12,88,63,830 and 28,15,358 have died; 5,29,67,186 are active cases and 7,30,81,286 have recovered as on April 1, 2021 at 4:24 am.
India
1,22,21,665 72330Cases
5,84,055 31489Active
1,14,74,683 40382Recovered
1,62,927 459Deaths
In India, there are 1,22,21,665 confirmed cases including 1,62,927 deaths. The number of active cases is 5,84,055 and 1,14,74,683 have recovered as on April 1, 2021 at 2:30 am.
State & District Details
| State | Cases | Active | Recovered | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
DistrictCases Mumbai45,478 Thane13,660 Pune9,920 Mumbai Suburban5,363 Aurangabad1,974 Nashik1,575 Raigad1,462 Palghar1,421 Solapur1,291 Jalgaon1,039 Akola757 Nagpur692 Kolhapur646 Satara629 Ratnagiri350 Amravati291 Dhule228 Hingoli208 Jalna201 Ahmednagar190 Nanded176 Yavatmal150 Sangli145 Latur139 Osmanabad125 Sindhudurg114 Buldhana88 Parbhani78 gondia69 Beed54 Nandurbar42 Gadchiroli42 Bhandara41 Chandrapur32 Washim13 Wardha11 |
28,12,980 39,544 |
3,57,604 15,717 |
24,00,727 23,600 |
54,649 227 |
|
DistrictCases Kannur357 Kasaragod333 Palakkad224 Malappuram119 Kollam118 Thrissur106 Thiruvananthapuram104 Pathanamthitta98 Kozhikode90 Alappuzha76 Kottayam73 Ernakulam60 Idukki40 Wayanad36 |
11,24,584 2,653 |
25,559 599 |
10,94,404 2,039 |
4,621 15 |
|
DistrictCases Udupi1,176 Kalaburagi669 Yadgir538 Bengaluru Urban529 Raichur369 Mandya346 Belagavi337 Bidar219 Hassan205 Davangere204 Vijayapura201 Dakshina Kannada179 Chikkaballapura149 Mysuru107 Bagalkote103 Uttara Kannada95 Shivamogga67 Dharwad61 Ballari60 Gadag45 Bengaluru Rural40 Tumakuru36 Kolar29 Haveri24 Chikkamagaluru19 Chitradurga14 Koppal5 Kodagu4 Ramanagara3 Chamarajanagara0 |
9,97,004 4,225 |
28,267 2,707 |
9,56,170 1,492 |
12,567 26 |
|
DistrictCases Kurnool795 Krishna557 Guntur511 Anantapur428 East Godavari356 Chittoor319 Sri Potti Sriramulu Nell*296 Y.S.R.205 West Godavari199 Srikakulam183 Prakasam104 Visakhapatnam103 Vizianagaram23 |
9,01,989 1,184 |
7,338 724 |
8,87,434 456 |
7,217 4 |
|
DistrictCases Chennai23,324 Chengalpattu1,314 Thiruvallur774 Villupuram509 Kanchipuram503 Tiruvannamalai496 Cuddalore477 Ariyalur444 Tirunelveli433 Tuticorin333 Kallakurichi324 Madurai322 Salem258 Coimbatore188 Virudhunagar185 Dindigul175 Perambalur133 Ranipet133 Thanjavur130 Theni129 Tiruchirappalli119 Ramanathapuram119 Tiruppur116 Kanniyakumari110 Tenkasi103 Nagapattinam99 Karur88 Namakkal83 Erode75 Vellore71 Thiruvarur67 Pudukkottai53 Sivaganga46 Tirupathur45 Krishnagiri43 The Nilgiris17 Dharmapuri15 |
8,86,673 2,579 |
15,879 1,033 |
8,58,075 1,527 |
12,719 19 |
|
DistrictCases North West5,463 Central4,817 West4,768 New Delhi3,405 North3,059 East2,472 South East2,446 South West2,391 South2,329 North East1,914 Shahdara1,580 |
6,62,430 1,819 |
8,838 1,409 |
6,42,565 399 |
11,027 11 |
|
DistrictCases Gautam Buddha Nagar1,119 Agra933 Ghaziabad794 Meerut504 Lucknow386 Saharanpur298 Kanpur Nagar286 Moradabad252 Varanasi243 Hapur225 Aligarh215 Basti214 Amethi206 Rampur203 Jaunpur194 Firozabad190 Barabanki168 Gorakhpur166 Bulandshahr166 Siddharth Nagar159 Ghazipur159 Bijnor157 Deoria143 Azamgarh138 Sant Kabeer Nagar132 Mathura129 Ayodhya120 Muzaffarnagar117 Sambhal116 Sultanpur97 Ambedkar Nagar92 Maharajganj85 Amroha80 Rae Bareli78 Bahraich73 Kheri72 Kannauj69 Baghpat68 Kushi Nagar67 Bhadohi60 Ballia60 Gonda59 Etah52 Hardoi49 Balrampur49 Mau48 Mainpuri46 Etawah46 Hathras43 Unnao42 Jalaun41 Jhansi41 Shamli40 Chandauli38 Auraiya37 Farrukhabad36 Sitapur32 Prayagraj30 Banda27 Shahjahanpur25 Shravasti23 Budaun23 Mirzapur22 Bareilly17 Kasganj16 Pratapgarh15 Pilibhit15 Sonbhadra10 Kaushambi6 Kanpur Dehat4 Chitrakoot4 Lalitpur3 Hamirpur3 Mahoba3 Fatehpur3 |
6,17,194 1,198 |
9,848 653 |
5,98,535 534 |
8,811 11 |
|
DistrictCases Kolkata2,777 Howrah1,435 24 Paraganas North1,031 Hooghly604 24 Paraganas South281 Maldah235 Dinajpur Uttar216 Coochbehar210 Birbhum206 Medinipur West159 Medinipur East153 Nadia139 Purba Bardhaman130 Murshidabad125 Bankura116 Darjeeling97 Jalpaiguri88 Paschim Bardhaman70 Purulia66 Dinajpur Dakshin50 Alipurduar39 Kalimpong18 Jhargram9 |
5,86,915 982 |
5,775 472 |
5,70,811 508 |
10,329 2 |
|
DistrictCases Bilaspur100 Korba100 Mungeli87 Baloda Bazar85 Jashpur77 Janjgir-Champa56 Mahasamund54 Rajnandgaon52 Kabirdham52 Raigarh47 Raipur46 Balod41 Korea39 Durg31 Bemetara21 Kanker19 Balrampur17 Surguja14 Gariyaband10 Surajpur9 Dhamtari6 Bijapur2 Bastar2 Dantewada0 Kondagaon0 Narayanpur0 Sukma0 |
3,49,187 4,563 |
25,529 3,472 |
3,19,488 1,052 |
4,170 39 |
|
DistrictCases Ganjam581 Jajapur322 Khordha238 Baleshwar190 Kendrapara164 Cuttack155 Bhadrak137 Balangir129 Puri103 Sundargarh102 Jagatsinghapur91 Nayagarh86 Mayurbhanj73 Nuapada69 Gajapati61 Dhenkanal36 Boudh34 Kendujhar34 Deogarh33 Kalahandi33 Sonepur29 Kandhamal28 Anugul26 Malkangiri20 Bargarh16 Koraput16 Sambalpur16 Jharsuguda8 Nabarangpur2 Rayagada2 |
3,40,917 297 |
1,905 136 |
3,37,091 161 |
1,921 |
|
DistrictCases Jaipur2,177 Jodhpur1,748 Udaipur724 Bharatpur563 Kota503 Nagaur500 Ajmer379 Dungarpur374 Pali352 Jhalawar329 Bhilwara250 Sikar231 Chittorgarh188 Tonk171 Jalore164 Rajsamand140 Sirohi130 Bikaner112 Banswara91 Alwar90 Churu81 Jhunjhunu64 Dausa61 Dholpur60 Baran59 Jaisalmer53 Barmer34 Hanumangarh31 SawaiMadhopur26 Karauli17 Pratapgarh14 Ganganagar8 Bundi5 |
3,33,149 906 |
8,663 508 |
3,21,668 393 |
2,818 5 |
|
DistrictCases Hyderabad2,475 Ranga Reddy183 Suryapet87 Jagitial77 Nizamabad76 MedchalMalkajgiri75 Mancherial43 YadadriBhuvanagiri40 Jogulamba Gadwal40 Vikarabad40 Nalgonda33 Warangal Urban32 Mahabubnagar30 Sangareddy26 Khammam26 Adilabad22 Nirmal21 Karimnagar17 RajannaSircilla16 Medak11 Kamareddy11 Mahabubabad10 Jayashankar Bhupalapally9 Nagarkurnool8 Kumuram Bheem Asifabad8 Jangoan8 Siddipet7 Peddapalli5 Bhadradri Kothagudem5 Warangal Rural4 Mulugu3 Narayanpet3 Wanaparthy1 |
3,08,776 887 |
5,511 546 |
3,01,564 337 |
1,701 4 |
|
DistrictCases Ahmadabad17,125 Surat2,311 Vadodara1,555 Gandhinagar410 Mahesana159 Banas Kantha147 Bhavnagar146 Rajkot135 Arvalli134 Mahisagar125 Anand107 PanchMahals107 Patan105 SabarKantha101 Kachchh99 Kheda98 Jamnagar63 Bharuch56 Botad55 Surendranagar55 Valsad47 GirSomnath45 Dohad43 Chhotaudepur37 Naysari35 Junagadh31 Narmada25 DevbhumiDwarka22 Amreli16 Porbandar11 Tapi6 Dang5 Morbi4 |
3,07,698 2,360 |
12,610 347 |
2,90,569 2,004 |
4,519 9 |
|
DistrictCases Indore3,839 Bhopal1,880 Ujjain799 Burhanpur351 Neemuch319 Jabalpur276 East Nimar266 Sagar228 Gwalior211 Khargone196 Dewas140 Dhar132 Mandsaur112 Morena109 Bhind87 Raisen71 Barwani60 Ratlam51 Rewa39 Shajapur39 Hoshangabad37 Vidisha37 Chhatarpur35 Betul35 Rajgarh31 Dindori29 Sheopur26 Damoh26 Satna24 Anuppur22 Panna20 Tikamgarh18 Sidhi17 Narsinghpur17 Chhindwara16 Agar Malwa15 Mandla15 Shivpuri15 Jhabua14 Shandol14 Singrauli13 Ashoknagar13 Datia12 Sehore12 Umaria10 Balaghat9 Guna8 Harda4 Alirajpur3 Katni3 Seoni2 Niwari0 |
2,95,511 2,332 |
17,096 1,062 |
2,74,429 1,261 |
3,986 9 |
|
DistrictCases Gurugram2,950 Faridabad867 Sonipat404 Rohtak145 Palwal120 Jhajjar114 Karnal104 Hisar98 Ambala93 Panipat78 Nuh68 Bhiwani60 Rewari56 Kurukshetra55 Sirsa50 Kaithal48 Mahendragarh47 CharkiDadri43 Panchkula39 Fatehabad38 Jind38 Yamunanagar19 |
2,90,800 1,106 |
9,726 289 |
2,77,919 809 |
3,155 8 |
|
DistrictCases Patna279 Bhagalpur266 Rohtas256 Khagaria253 Begusarai243 Madhubani199 Munger188 Jehanabad178 Katihar175 Darbhanga143 Samastipur139 Siwan139 PurbiChamparan138 Purnia135 Banka134 Buxar134 Nalanda123 Gopalganj123 Nawada122 Sheikhpura118 Gaya115 Kaimur (bhabua)105 Bhojpur103 Saran101 Muzaffarpur96 Saharsa88 Supaul87 Vaishali87 Madhepura82 Kishanganj75 Aurangabad75 Sitamarhi73 Lakhisarai72 Araria68 Pashchim Champaran57 Arwal52 Jamui47 Sheohar20 |
2,65,527 259 |
1,580 124 |
2,62,371 133 |
1,576 2 |
|
DistrictCases Amritsar485 Jalandhar297 Ludhiana293 Tarn Taran163 Gurdaspur154 Hoshiarpur140 S.A.S Nagar137 Patiala132 Sangrur107 Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar (Nawanshahr)99 Pathankot86 Rupnagar (Ropar)74 Faridkot74 Sri Muktsar Sahib71 Moga65 Bathinda60 Fatehgarh Sahib57 Fazilka53 Firozepur50 Kapurthala44 Mansa31 Barnala25 |
2,39,734 2,944 |
23,832 101 |
2,09,034 2,788 |
6,868 55 |
|
DistrictCases Kamrup Metro276 Golaghat203 Nagaon143 Hojai89 Dima Hasao86 Karimganj85 Tinsukia84 Cachar80 Dibrugarh61 Hailakandi57 Lakhimpur57 Marigaon50 Dhemaji47 Kamrup42 Kokrajhar37 Dhubri30 Charaideo29 Barpeta28 Udalguri28 Sonitpur27 Jorhat24 Nalbari23 Darrang20 Sivasagar20 Goalpara19 Biswanath16 Baksa14 KarbiAnglong13 Bongaigaon12 Chirang6 West KarbiAnglong5 South SalmaraMancachar4 Majuli2 |
2,18,412 49 |
1,862 16 |
2,15,445 32 |
1,105 1 |
|
DistrictCases Anantnag395 Srinagar300 Kulgam295 Baramulla271 Shopian255 Kupwara231 Bandipora175 Udhampur155 Ramban151 Jammu138 Budgam110 Pulwama108 Kathua53 Rajouri39 Ganderbal37 Poonch35 Doda27 Reasi26 Samba25 Kishtwar10 Mirpur0 Muzaffarabad0 |
1,30,960 373 |
2,531 238 |
1,26,435 131 |
1,994 4 |
|
DistrictCases East Singhbum170 Ranchi148 Hazaribagh110 Garhwa80 Ramgarh75 Koderma58 Simdega48 Dhanbad32 Gumla28 Palamu27 West Singhbhum21 SaraikelaKharsawan20 Giridih19 Bokaro16 Latehar14 Khunti10 Lohardaga8 Deoghar5 Dumka5 Pakur4 Jamtara2 Godda2 Chatra1 Sahebganj0 |
1,24,201 693 |
2,825 571 |
1,20,263 122 |
1,113 |
|
DistrictCases Dehradun370 Nainital323 Tehri Garhwal110 Haridwar94 Udam Singh Nagar83 Almora71 Champawat45 Pithoragarh43 Chamoli36 PauriGarhwal36 Bageshwar31 Rudraprayag30 Uttar Kashi24 |
1,00,411 293 |
1,863 167 |
96,831 122 |
1,717 4 |
|
DistrictCases Hamirpur117 Kangra105 Una41 Solan32 Chamba29 Bilaspur21 Mandi21 Sirmaur11 Shimla10 Kullu4 Kinnaur2 Lahaul And Spiti0 |
63,605 285 |
2,973 143 |
59,584 139 |
1,048 3 |
|
DistrictCases South Goa69 North Goa57 |
58,039 200 |
1,556 137 |
55,653 62 |
830 1 |
|
DistrictCases Pondicherry111 Mahe4 Karaikal2 Yanam0 |
41,468 127 |
1,074 63 |
39,712 64 |
682 |
|
DistrictCases Dhalai196 Sepahijala174 Gomati74 South Tripura53 Unakoti49 West Tripura45 Khowai24 North Tripura14 |
33,517 14 |
60 4 |
33,065 10 |
392 |
|
DistrictCases Churachandpur32 Kangpokpi26 Imphal West21 Thoubal18 Imphal East10 Tengnoupal9 Bishnupur7 Senapati6 Chandel5 Kamjong5 Ukhrul4 Jiribam3 Pherzawl3 Kakching2 Tamenglong2 Noney1 |
29,400 7 |
70 3 |
28,956 4 |
374 |
|
DistrictCases Chandigarh313 |
26,999 266 |
2,918 87 |
23,702 179 |
379 |
|
DistrictCases Changlang31 Papum Pare8 Lohit3 Namsai2 West Siang1 East Siang1 Upper Siang1 Tawang1 PakkeKessang1 West Kameng0 Upper Subansiri0 Tirap0 Siang0 Shi Yomi0 Anjaw0 Lower Subansiri0 Lower Dibang Valley0 Longding0 Leparada0 KurungKumey0 KraDaadi0 Kamle0 East Kameng0 Dibang Valley0 Lower Siang0 |
16,845 |
4 0 |
16,785 |
56 |
|
DistrictCases East Khasi Hills22 West Garo Hills5 South West Garo Hills4 North Garo Hills1 West Jaintia Hills1 West Khasi Hills1 East Garo Hills0 East Jaintia Hills0 Ribhoi0 South Garo Hills0 South West Khasi Hills0 |
14,065 9 |
49 4 |
13,866 5 |
150 |
|
DistrictCases Dimapur20 Mon8 Kohima7 Kiphire3 Tuensang3 Peren2 Phek1 Longleng0 Mokokchung0 Wokha0 Zunheboto0 |
12,340 107 |
112 105 |
12,136 2 |
92 |
|
DistrictCases Kargil77 LehLadakh43 |
10,157 38 |
256 34 |
9,771 4 |
130 |
|
DistrictCases East District3 South District3 North District0 West District0 |
6,235 2 |
47 1 |
6,053 3 |
135 |
|
DistrictCases South Andamans33 Nicobars1 North And Middle Andaman1 |
5,083 2 |
45 2 |
4,976 |
62 |
|
DistrictCases Kolasib11 Aizawl10 Mamit8 Lawngtlai2 Lunglei2 Saitual1 Champhai0 Hnahthial0 Khawzawl0 Saiha0 Serchhip0 |
4,476 3 |
31 3 |
4,434 |
11 |
|
DistrictCases Dadra And Nagar Haveli20 |
3,661 19 |
177 11 |
3,482 8 |
2 |
|
DistrictCases Lakshadweep District0 |
723 5 |
42 3 |
680 2 |
1 |