Times of India | 1 month ago | 19-08-2022 | 07:35 am
PANAJI: With Goa's daily average of Covid cases still hovering around 100 and above, the health services on Thursday appealed to people to wear masks in crowded places, especially during the festive period. For the past two days, the state has recorded 380 cases, with 180 detected on Thursday, taking the positivity rate to 14%. The active caseload increased to 941 and the mortality count rose to 3,957, with one fatality recorded over the past 24 hours. With 115 recoveries, the recovery rate stood at 98%. State epidemiologist Dr Prashant Suryawanshi said that people cannot be complacent and assume the pandemic has ended as the state has not recorded nil Covid cases. "If you take any public place, it appears that people have forgotten about Covid appropriate behaviour. Even in crowded places, people do not wear masks," he said. He said the state has reported around 100 cases on a daily basis, though on Wednesday, the count rose to 200 cases. "We want people to take precautions when they go to hospitals, pharmacies or crowded places. It is important to wear masks, especially with the ongoing festive season, and when crowding is inevitable," he said. He said that on an encouraging note, hospital admissions as well as fatalities are low. Goa recorded 14 deaths in July, and five this month till date. Not just in Goa, but even in other states, there has been a rise in infections, so much so that the Delhi government has mandated wearing of masks in public spaces, Suryawanshi said. "With cases still being reported, we cannot afford to relax completely," he said. He insisted that even people having mild symptoms should get themselves tested without delay. There has been an uptick in cases, while an outbreak has not been reported. State immunisation officer Dr Rajendra Borkar said that it appears as though the third wave of the pandemic has not ended, and ruled out the threat of a fourth wave. "When cases drop completely and remain stable on that level for a considerable period, then only we can say the wave has ended," he said. In February, health department officials had stated that Goa had crossed the peak of the third wave. The third wave in the state surged faster than the first two, and also reached its peak in the shortest duration, just 21 days.
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