How Kerala Went On From Being A Role Model In Containment To Having Around 2 Lakh COVID Cases
In the past 24 hours, the southern state of Kerala saw a new daily COVID tally as 8,830 people tested positive for coronavirus.
In an indication of the worsening COVID-19 scenario, the state for the first time saw its daily cases crossing the 8,000 mark. The previous single-day high was 7,445 on Sunday.
With this, the total number of those infected with COVID-19 in the state has risen to 1,95,106.
As many as 123 health workers were among those affected on Wednesday.?
Over 67,000 active COVID cases in Kerala
At present, the state has 67,061 active cases, while 1,28,224 people have been cured so far.
Another 23 deaths were reported, taking the state's toll to 742, while the total hotspots now number 660.
'Kerala model' crumbling
While these are not the worst figures by any means in the country, there is a growing fear that the 'Kerala model' which had won acclaims across the world for its initial response may crumble due to the rapid spread of the virus.
In Kerala, COVID-19 cases are doubling on an average of every 20 days, and the fear is that it is only going to get worse.
The close to 9000 new cases in a day in Kerala is a sharp contrast from a couple of months ago when the state recorded zero new cases for two days and the number of active cases had dropped below 40.
Lifting lockdown restrictions compounded problems
But since the lockdown restrictions were lifted and interstate travel and repartition of NRIs began, Keala started losing its grip on the much-celebrated containment measures, which had kept the COVID-19 cases low in the state.
Kerala Health Minister KK Shailaja who led the state's response to COVID-19 from the front had however predicted that the second wave of the deadly infection will be a major challenge for the healthcare system there.
And that is exactly what is happening now and the much-talked-about public healthcare system in Kerala is feeling the heat, due to the rise in the number of cases.
Onam festival congregation to be blamed?
The recent spike in the number of new infections is largely blamed on the Onam festival almost a month ago.
The numbers are expected to rise at least for a few more weeks before the spread can be contained or brought down.
Like the rest of the country, the general public's desire to go back to life as normal and trying to revitalize the economy have also contributed to the current situation.
The disregard for social distancing and other COVID-19 guidelines are also not helping the state in any ways.
