4th Apr 2021 10:04:PM Editorials
Eastern Sentinel Arunachal News

It was a devastating Sunday for the country so far as the second Covid wave is concerned as the daily caseload count crossed 90,000 mark, the first to happen since mid-September. A sense of uneasiness has also returned in Arunachal Pradesh as after several months of zero additions, three new cases were detected on Saturday. The evolving national scenario which is going from bad to worse has to be attributed cumulatively to overconfidence and indecision. If relinquishing of SOPs by citizens that has been a major contributor to the rise can be cited as 'mass overconfidence', the recent alterations to the original vaccination delivery policy by the Union Health Ministry will count as an instance of correct decision coming only at late hours. Failure to inoculate at least 15-20% of the entire population by now has resulted in galloping of cases and strictly from the medical science angle this means a double challenge. A good portion of time and resources will now have to be kept aside to conduct tests and not on vaccination alone. Maybe, within a few days from now it will be announced that Covid vaccination will be opened up for all, irrespective of age slabs. If it’s so, it will invite kudos. But even then, it will be counted as yet another example of belated decision making.

A few figure-backed examples will be needed to endorse the rising fear that the second wave in India is going to be deadlier than the first. While in 2020 it took several months for the country to climb the global Covid ladder of cases and deaths, in the preliminary phase of the 2nd one, it has taken just weeks to reach so. During the seven days preceding Friday last, India recorded 68,969 new cases a day on an average, overtaking the US where it was 65,753 and only behind Brazil which recorded 72,151. On Friday, India added 89,030 which shot up to 93,249 on Sunday, the highest single-day rise so far this year and the biggest daily rise since September 19, when it was 93,337. It seems the harrowing days of counting deaths have returned as 513 new fatalities were recorded on Sunday, taking the overall national Covid death tally to 1.64+ lakh. State Health Minister Alo Libang on Sunday in an interview to PTI has said that Arunachal has been able to contain the pandemic due to collective efforts of its medical fraternity, frontline workers and people and no doubt it’s true.

While this concerted movement needs to be kept rolling, the single-most important task now for the state is to accelerate vaccination, anyhow and by all-possible means. 


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

<< Back to News List