Onam Spike? Kerala Reports 31,445 COVID-19 Cases In 24 Hours, Could Get Worse In Coming Days
The COVID-19 situation in Kerala is going from bad to worse as the state on Wednesday recorded 31,445 new cases in the state in the past 24 hours. 215 COVID deaths were also reported in the state during the same time.
The test positivity rare (TPR) in Kerala has also shot up to 19.03.
This was the third time the daily COVID-19 tally has crossed the 24,000 mark after May 26 when the state had recorded 28,798 cases.
On Tuesday Kerala had reported 24,296 fresh infections, and?registered 173 Covid fatalities.??
On May 27, the state had recorded 24,166 fresh COVID-19 cases.
Since then the state twice came close to the 24,000 mark on May 29 -- 23,513 -- and then on August 3 -- 23,676.
While COVID-19 cases came down across India since mid-May, in Kerala it had not fallen below the 10,000 except for weekends when the number of tests is low.
And in the past few weeks, despite the best efforts by the government to control the spread, it has shown an increasing trend.
In fact, Kerala could see another major spike in daily COVID-19 numbers in the next few weeks and the state government estimates there could be 30,000-35,000 cases in a day.
Onam spike too?
Last week was Onam, the biggest festival in the state and there is a fear that the celebrations could lead to another spike, the full extent of which will only be known in the coming weeks.
This is despite the fact that the Onam celebrations were largely muted this year, due to the prevailing COVID-19 situation.
The government had banned mass gatherings and other public celebrations in the wake of the pandemic.
Another worry for the Kerala government is the high number of breakthrough infections, where people including those who have been fully vaccinated or were infected by COVID-19 getting reinfected.
On Tuesday, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan directed those district administrations which have administered the first dose vaccination to 70 per cent population to complete the vaccination process within next two weeks.
"Wayanad, Pathanamthitta, Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam Districts have a high rate vaccination and hence only those with symptoms will be tested there. Testing will be increased in other districts," Vijayan said in a release.
The chief minister also directed the local self-government bodies to submit a report on vaccination in their jurisdiction.
Vijayan said the rate of breakthrough infections in Idukki, Palakkad and Kasaragod districts are more than five per cent and directed the Health Department to conduct genetic studies in these districts.
