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NEW DELHI: The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in India surpassed 7 million on Sunday (October 11) with a number of new cases declining in recent weeks, even as health experts warn of the onset of fatigue from the mask and distancing.
The Ministry of Health recorded another 74,383 infections in the last 24 hours. India is expected to become the country most affected by the pandemic in the coming weeks, overtaking the United States, where more than 7.7 million infections have been reported.
The ministry also reported 918 additional deaths, bringing the total deaths to 108,334.
The number of people who have died from COVID-19 has remained relatively low in South and Southeast Asia, from India to Vietnam to Taiwan, compared to European countries and the United States, said Dr. Randeep Guleria, an expert on government health.
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“We have been able to keep the rise of the curve slow, but I agree that we have not been able to make it move aggressively down. That is related to our population density, the diversity of our country and the socio-economic challenges in our country, ”said Guleria, referring to India’s growing population of nearly 1.4 billion.
However, some experts say that the death toll in India may not be reliable due to poor information and health infrastructure and inadequate testing.
India aims to provide vaccines to 250 million people by July 2021, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said last week. He said the government planned to receive 450 to 500 million doses of vaccines and would guarantee “equitable access.”
India saw a sharp increase in cases in July, adding more than 2 million in August and another 3 million in September. But you’re seeing a slower pace of coronavirus spread since mid-September, when daily infections hit a record 97,894.
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It has an average of more than 70,000 cases a day so far this month. India has a high recovery rate of 85 percent with active cases below 1 million, according to the Ministry of Health.
Health officials have warned of the possibility of the virus spreading during the upcoming religious festival season, which is marked by large rallies in temples and business districts.
A crucial factor will be that people wear masks and keep a safe distance.
Dr SP Kalantri, director of a Sevagram village hospital in India’s worst affected western Maharashtra state, said that people in his village had stopped wearing masks, keeping their distance, or washing their hands regularly. He added that the sick were still brought to his hospital.
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India’s scarce health resources are poorly distributed across the country. Almost 600 million Indians live in rural areas, and with the virus affecting India’s vast interior, experts worry that hospitals could be overwhelmed.
“If we are able to behave well in terms of physical distancing and masks, maybe early next year we can reach a new normal. COVID-19 will not end, but it will be under reasonable control with travel and other things getting easier and people relatively safer, ”Guleria said.
Retired virologist Dr. T Jacob John said there is a growing trend among Indians not to wear masks or to maintain their distancing.
Social media has compounded the problem by spreading misinformation and false cures. “And the upshot of this is that people have gotten tired and started drawing their own conclusions,” John said.
Nationwide, India is testing more than 1 million samples per day, surpassing the World Health Organization benchmark of 140 tests per 1 million people. But many of these are antigen tests, which look for virus proteins and are faster but less accurate than RT-PCR, which confirm the coronavirus by its genetic code.
With the economy contracting by a record 23.9 percent in the April-June quarter, leaving millions of people unemployed, the Indian government continues to ease the lockdown restrictions that were imposed in late March. In May, the government announced a $ 266 billion stimulus package, but consumer demand and manufacturing have not yet recovered.
A large number of offices, shops, stores, liquor stores, bars and restaurants have reopened. Restricted domestic and international evacuation flights are being operated along with train services.
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