Covid-appropriate behaviour must during festivals- health ministry

The second wave of Covid-19 is not yet over in India and Covid-appropriate behaviour has to be followed during festivals. Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Thursday said that the upcoming months, due to the festive season, remain crucial for the nation. He said that events which can lead to crowds should be strictly avoided. Speaking to newsmen in New Delhi, he added  that based on our experience, we have seen a spike after every festival. The coming months of September and October are crucial because we will be celebrating a few festivals. Festivals have to be celebrated following Covid-19 appropriated behaviour. He added that the Covid-19 protocols will have to be adhered to even after complete vaccination. "Vaccines reduce the disease severity and help in avoiding hospitalisation. But still, usage of masks and Covid protocols must continue even after vaccination.

ICMR director-general Professor Balram Bhargava pointed out that the weekly test positivity rate remains above 10% in at least 41 districts. He also said that the nation is in the midst of the second wave and there are 27% such districts where the weekly test positivity rate remains between 5-10%. Bhargava also said that the Covid-19 vaccines are ‘disease-modifying vaccines’ and not ‘disease-preventing vaccines’ and stressed upon continuing using masks to prevent further spread of Covid-19 even after being vaccinated. Bhushan said that the cumulative recovery rate is higher than 97% as he outlined that there are 31 states with less than 10,000 active cases, four states with 10,000 to 1 lakh active cases and only one state, Kerala, with more than 1 lakh active cases. Kerala also contributed to 51.19% of the total number of active cases in the country.