Manipur Health Minister Dr Sapam Ranjan has stated that the government has not let its guard down and is prepared for any eventualities in the wake of Manipur registering zero Covid active cases for the past two consecutive days since Friday.
In an exclusive conversation with the Imphal Free Press on the sidelines of a programme held at Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Lamphel on Saturday, Dr Ranjan said that the government is still on its toes with experts having already predicted that the country may experience the Covid fourth wave in June.
The Health minister further admitted that the vaccination coverage in the state is still low and informed that the Health department is reviewing the status. “Besides, the Covid pattern is unpredictable. The fourth wave may or may not start in June. Nevertheless, authorities concerned are taking necessary steps and measures to ramp up the vaccination drive,” he added.
Meanwhile, JNIMS medical superintendent, Dr Kh Lokeshwar expressed that the probable Covid fourth wave will likely be ‘less severe’ in Manipur compared to other parts of the world.
Speaking to the Imphal Free Press, he said that the people are now well aware of the Covid appropriate behaviour and spreading of Covid due to irresponsible behaviour will be very much lessened.
“What we are afraid of is mortality. But considering the present situation, there may be a lesser number of deaths even if the state experiences a fourth wave,” he stated.
Meanwhile, with the state reporting no fresh Covid cases in the last 24 hours, for the second straight day, the cumulative number of positive cases stood at 1,37,230 while the total death toll remained at 2,120 as of Saturday.
As many as 1,35,110 people have recuperated from Covid so far and the state’s recovery rate stood at 98.45 per cent.
According to the latest update from the COVID-19 Common Control Room, 61.82 per cent and 51.92 per cent of the eligible population of Manipur have been administered with the first dose and second dose of vaccine respectively.
Interestingly, the vaccination coverage is lowest in Kangpokpi district with only 22.73 per cent having inoculated with the first dose, while 17.19 per cent have been administered with the second dose. The rate of immunization was reportedly low in most of the hill districts of Manipur.
In an exclusive interview to the Imphal Free Press on April 23, Manipur Health Services director Dr K Rajo Singh said that despite putting in a lot of efforts for vaccinations, the rate of immunisation was low in almost all the hill districts as it was below 50 per cent.
Also, when no COVID-19 positive case was recorded in Manipur, for the first time on April 22 since the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic, Dr Rajo, speaking to the IFP, had warned the people of the state to not let their guard down but to remain alert to prevent the fourth wave from affecting the state.
Dr Rajo had also said that the state government may re-impose all restrictions if COVID-19 cases spike again. He then said that the government was well prepared to face any kind of COVID-19 consequences as all the COVID Care Centre (CCC) are in a condition that can be reopened at any time. People should take care of themselves by maintaining COVID-19 appropriate behavior, he said.
