Maharashtra will be hit by the third wave of the coronavirus by the end of October or the first week of November as most festivities come to an end, and at least 60 lakh people will be infected by Covid-19, state Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Thursday.
Speaking to reporters after the state cabinet meeting, Tope said that at least 13 lakh will likely require oxygen support.
“We have increased our oxygen capacity to 2000 MT,” he told CNN-NEWS18 in an exclusive interview.
The health minister also spoke at length with his Kerala counterpart as the state is battling record infections post-Onam festivities. And with Ganesh Chaturthi, Navratri, Dussehra and Diwali just around the corner, there are fears that Maharashtra will also witness a massive spike as Covid restrictions are being relaxed.
Maharashtra last week further relaxed Covid-19 lockdown curbs it had put in place in April as cases rose exponentially during the second wave. While cinemas and religious places are still closed, malls have been allowed to open and shop timings have been increased. Market places have also been bustling with festive shoppers.
Vaccination will be the state’s top priority, Tope said. Several districts, including Mumbai, have had to temporarily shut the vaccine drive due to a shortage of doses. “We are getting almost 1.2 crore doses per month. The Centre has told us we will get 1.7 crore doses from next month. The priority is to provide second doses to beneficiaries.”
“We can vaccinate over 15 lakh people on a daily basis (if there is enough stock_, he said.
Threat to children
Leading experts have repeatedly warned of an imminent third Covid-19 wave in India.
An expert panel, set up by an institute under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), has predicted that the third wave will hit the country anytime between September and October and suggested significantly ramping up vaccination pace. The committee of experts, constituted by the National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), also said that children will have a similar risk as adults since paediatric facilities, doctors and equipment like ventilators, ambulances, etc. are nowhere close to what may be required in case a large number of children become infected.
Children with Covid-19 infection have largely been seen to be asymptomatic or develop mild symptoms. But this becomes worrisome in case children have any comorbidity or other special needs. According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, out of all the children hospitalised due to COVID, 60-70 per cent had comorbidities or low immunity.
The working group committee experts suggested a holistic home care model, immediate increase in paediatric medical capacities and prioritising mental health issues among children, the report said. According to the COVID vaccination dashboard of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, as of August 2, 2021, 47,85,44, 144 (over 47 crore), individuals have been administered at least one dose of Covid vaccine.
Maharashtra braces for third wave
The Maharashtra government began bracing itself for the third wave of Covid-19 from July. After ranking high on national Covid-19 charts during both the waves, the state began devising a strategy drawn from both its failures and successes.
The public health department has chalked out a Rs 1,676-crore proposal for the Covid-19 plan, which includes Rs 782 crore for essential medicines and consumables for Covid and Covid-associated diseases and Rs 893 crore for newer medicines required for treatment of mild to moderate Covid patients, the report added.
The state government will also scale up stocks of essential medicines and testing kits. It’s been estimated that eight lakh vials of remdesivir will be required for the third wave and the government is setting up an inventory for 1.25 crore RT-PCR and 87.5 lakh antigen tests.
Special paediatric health centres are being commissioned in every district and high-density areas to mitigate Covid fears among children. During a Covid-19 meeting with experts in July, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was informed that the state can expect 50 lakh cases, of these five lakh can be children. Out of these five lakh children, 2.5 lakh will be expected to visit public centres and 3.5% of children may need admission and treatment under the supervision of paediatricians.
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