Among the many factors and sub-factors that are now being analyzed to dig out the exact causes that led to India becoming the world’s most Covid affected country during the 2nd wave, it’s the massive spread of infection in rural areas that has attracted attention of public health experts. It’s worthy to mention that in Arunachal Pradesh too in very little time all the districts have come under the sway of the virus. Based on limited data that have arrived so far and the experience of on-ground personnel fighting the pandemic in rural India, it can only be said that it’s a combination of factors that led to this massive and largely undetected surge. While limited Covid testing facilities is a principal factor that led to late detection and a delayed commencement of isolation and treatment that invariably caused the transmission chain to get lengthened, the other worrying factor is a very little or even complete disregard of the mandated Covid protection norms. This ‘ignorance’ on the part of the rural populace of the country can and should be attributed to less-penetrative and inadequate awareness campaigns conducted in 2020 and their near-discontinuance during the winter months when cases dwindled.
The falling number of cases during the last one week may not be a correct reflection of the true Covid situation in the country, the experts are gradually realizing that the more powerful new strain is having a free run in the rural belts in at least 22 states, which unfortunately is going undetected primarily due to lack of testing facilities. Reportedly, the ICMR is drawing a plan to increase the national Covid diagnostic capacity from the current level of 3 million daily tests to 4.5 million by June-end with an arch on covering the rural areas through deployment of Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) in each of an estimated 187,000 primary health centres and other rural-level health facilities. This particular response (testing infra) which is the first step in containing the pandemic was supposed to be taken much before and during the 1st wave itself and upscaled during the period when cases seemed to come down. Unless Covid testing is increased the actual status of spread of the virus among rural populace will remain undetected and with less data base as a result, the response plans will turn out to be faulty. Arunachal must take due cognizance of this necessity and ramp up testing facilities in districts to know the exact extent of Covid burden.
The NGOs and CBOs which played exemplary roles in the 1st phase must be taken into confidence once more.

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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