New Delhi: All India Institutes of Medical Science (AIIMS) chief Dr. Randeep Guleria has warned that the third wave of COVID-19 could hit India within the next 6-8 weeks. Talking to NDTV, he also said that the third wave is inevitable in India.
Usually, the new wave takes around three months. However, the duration may change depending on various factors, he added.
Expressing concern over people who are not following COVID-19 protocols, he said, “It seems we have not learned from first and second wave. People are still gathering in large number”.
Precautionary steps
Speaking on the precautionary steps to be taken, he said that there is a need for strict surveillance, testing and tracking, mini-lockdown in areas where the positivity rate crosses five percent, etc. He also stressed the importance of vaccination.
During second wave in India, virus has spread rapidly when compared to first wave and now, delta variant is more infectious, he said.
Talking about the shortage of hospital beds faced during the second wave, he said that there is a need to control fresh cases as any healthcare system will collapse if there is an unprecedented rise in new infections.
COVID-19 cases in India
Meanwhile, India recorded 60,753 new cases of COVID-19 and 1,647 fatalities in the last 24 hours, according to data released by the Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry on Saturday.
The overall tally of COVID-19 cases in the country now stands at 2,98,23,546. The country has 7,60,019 active cases presently