With the country reporting fewer than one lakh coronavirus cases daily for the past four days, the health ministry on Thursday said the overall pandemic situation was optimistic.
The ministry said there had been a decline in cases and positivity rates across the states. It further said that the average daily case in the past one week stood at 96,392 cases; and that only four states—Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka—were now reporting more than 50,000 active cases.
“When we look at the pandemic situation, a mixed picture emerges. We also see optimization. Because the nation has been reporting less than one lakh cases in the last four to five days. We are now reporting cases below the levels of the first surge peak. This pattern is consistent. Another good signal is that overall positivity is below five per cent. It is a signal that the overall pandemic situation is optimistic,” Dr VK Paul, head of India’s covid-19 task force, said.
Paul also highlighted that the contraction in the new case had been consistent in the past few days across the country. “Also, further contraction of the pandemic is apparently consistent as of now. However, along with that, we also see areas and districts of concern. Some states are reporting high daily positivity: Kerala, Mizoram, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim. At the state level, these are points and data of concern,” Paul said.
Paul, however, said the country, which experienced a surge in cases fueled by the highly infectious Omron variant—continued to remain vigilant. “At the district level, approximately 40 districts have shown an increase in weekly cases and positivity rates. And 200 districts have a positivity of 10 per cent. Therefore, the overall picture is optimistic. There is no doubt about that. However, if we look at it closely, then there are very critical problems of concern at the state and district levels. So we are passing through a transition towards improvement. But then this is not yet the time for us to be less vigilant. We cannot lower our guard,” Paul said.
The ministry said that 433 districts reported positivity rates below five per cent in the week ending February 9, as against 268 districts in the week ending February 2. However, Paul reiterated that despite the drop in positivity rates, containment, surveillance and Covid-appropriate behavior continued to remain critical due to uncertainty over the emerging variants of the virus.
“Going into the future, this is not the end of the virus. This is still around in the world and the country. And the virus, being under pressure, will try to emerge fitter, so that it could find a way to increase exponentially. Therefore, the x-factor should always be borne in our minds. The world doesn’t know everything about this virus,” Paul said.
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