In the initial days of the coronavirus outbreak, top US immunologist Anthony Fauci had called the pandemic, ''a perfect storm with no end in near sight.'' When Fauci made those comments, India was a safe haven, as the country was way below the United States, Italy, and the UK in the Covid chaos chart. However, the scenario has changed now, and the second wave of coronavirus in India is spreading in an unprecedented manner. In the last 24 hours, India witnessed 2,61,000 new cases and 1,501 Covid-related deaths.
India facing the heat of pandemic
It was within three days that the coronavirus positive cases in India reached 2.5 lakhs from 2 lakhs. The death toll in India is also rising drastically. On March 16, the pandemic claimed the lives of 187 people, and within one month, on April 17, 1493 people lost their lives due to the pandemic infection.
Earlier, top sources in the Union Health Ministry had revealed that the sudden surge in coronavirus cases might be due to the double mutant variant which has been already detected in 10 states. Medical experts believe that the double mutant variant is a super-spreading strain that is much deadlier than the original coronavirus detected in Wuhan, China.
A double mutation usually happens when two mutated strains of Covid come together to form a third strain. According to genomic experts, a double mutation has happened in India as E484Q and L452R have combined to form a deadly new strain.
Test positivity rate rising dramatically
On April 17, Kerala recorded 13,835 new coronavirus cases. Shockingly, the test positivity rate in Kerala shot up to 17.04 percent on Saturday. This is for the first time that the test positivity rate is reaching such alarming levels in Kerala.
Amid this chaos, the Kerala government has given a green signal to organize Thrissur Pooram. Even though the government has imposed restrictions to carry out the festival, it is still unclear how the city police will manage an overwhelming crowd.
