eng
competition

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Covid Round 2

created Apr 8th 2021, 09:13 by dksince93


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277 words
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The second pandemic wave long feared by experts now is upon us and from the way that numbers are soaring, it could be even more widespread than the first. What’s more, this time infections are spreading beyond India’s dense megalopolises to smaller cities and towns where medical facilities are poorer, fuelling problems. In Maharashtra, for instance, Akola, Nanded, Jalgaon and Aurangabad are amongst India's 10 worst-hit districts. Similarly, in Punjab, where 81 per cent of infections involve the fast-spreading UK variant, low-populated Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, has many cases. Daily deaths also have surged 4.5 times from 96 on March 8 to 425 on April 4, calculated on a seven-day average.
What’s the way forward? For a start, we have to resume rigorous social distancing. Mask-wearing has to be a must. While this may sound elementary, after an exhaustingly ultra-careful year, we’ve let the mask slip, so to speak. Affluent youngsters have been enjoying the nightlife and that’s why night curfews have been imposed in Delhi and Mumbai. In Mumbai, where suburban trains have been as jampacked, as during pre-pandemic times, government servants and non-essential employees have been ordered to work from home wherever possible. These are essential steps to control numbers and avoid patients overwhelming the hospital system. We need beds in general wards and crucially, ICU beds with oxygen facilities.
The current wave, so far, is confined to a handful of States and over half the infections are in Maharashtra. We should consider temporarily shifting medical staff from less hard-hit states to more seriously affected ones to help them cope. These are essential steps to control numbers and avoid patients overwhelming the hospital system.

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