Second wave of COVID-19 can't be ruled out in winters: Expert panel

The number of new coronavirus cases and deaths have declined in the last three weeks as the spread of the pandemic has stabilised in most of the states Niti Aayog Member V K Paul said on Sunday but did not rule out the possibility of a second wave of infections in the winter seasonPaul who is also the chief of an expert panel coordinating efforts to tackle the pandemic in the country said that once the COVID19 vaccine is available there will be enough resources to deliver as well as make it accessible to citizensIn India the new coronavirus cases and number of deaths have declined in the last three weeks and the pandemic has stabilised in most of the states However there are five states Kerala Karnataka Rajasthan Chhattisgarh and West Bengal and 34 Union Territories UTs where there is still a rising trend Paul told PTI in an interviewHe is heading the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID19 NEGVAC According to him India is in a somewhat better position now but the country still has a long way to go because 90 per cent of the people are still susceptible to coronavirus infectionsOn whether India could see a second wave of coronavirus infections in the winter Paul said that with the onset of winter countries across Europe are seeing resurgence of COVID19 cases We cannot rule out a second coronavirus wave this winter in India Things can happen and we are still learning about the virus Paul notedHe stressed on COVID19appropriate behaviour during festival season and winter months Because of the winter season some increase in pollution in north India as well as festival season we have to be very careful coming months are a challenge One would be worried that we could lose the gains that we have made Paul saidHe also cautioned against any complacency about the decline in the number of new cases and called for keeping up the efforts to contain the pandemic If we dont take precaution if we are not careful because we are susceptible there can be escalation God forbid but we can avoid itThis is in our hand whether India has another wave or not is very much in our own hand the Niti Aayog member saidTo a query about storage and distribution of vaccine once it is available he said India has enough cold storage facilities to an extent and this can be readily augmented as requiredOnce the vaccine is available there will be enough resources for delivering vaccines and making it accessible to the citizens and there will be no concern about resources under those circumstances Paul saidOn Saturday the Prime Ministers Office said the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID19 NEGVAC in consultation with state governments and all relevant stakeholders have prepared a detailed blueprint for vaccine storage distribution and administrationThe group in consultation with states is working actively on prioritisation and distribution of vaccines The coronavirus death toll climbed to 114031 the health ministrys data updated at 8 am on Sunday showed The number of active cases of coronavirus infection remained below eight lakh for the second consecutive day India is the second worsthit nation in terms of COVID19 cases after the USKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest newsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever