Social behaviour key to resurgence of virus, say experts
CHANDIGARH: For a fourth successive week, the coronavirus infection in Haryana dipped to a record low.
The state reported 200 infections last week (July 18-25) which was the lowest ever weekly virus count during a period of decline in the transmission of the infection.
Last week’s count also surpassed the week before’s (July 12-18) infection tally of 260 which was also the record low weekly count at that moment.
In fact, the infection rate is plunging to an all-time low since June-end when 525 infections were reported between June 28-July 4, and 376 between July 5-11.
The daily positivity rate which went as high as 27% during the surge in April-may now stood at 0.09%. The virus transmission during the second wave was devastating with over 4.21 lakh infections and over 4,200 fatalities being reported in a sixweek period between April 12 to May 23.
‘Lapses will start spread again’
However, even as the virus has kept up its downward trajectory for a consecutive 11th week, the reopening of restaurants, shopping malls, swimming pools, spas, gyms, bars, educational institutions, offices and easing of restrictions on the assembly of people, health officials said, poses a big challenge in keeping the numbers down.
“People want to get on with their lives. But lapses in virus prevention measures such as not wearing masks in public places, defying physical distancing norms, eateries not strictly adhering to protocol of allowing only 50% seating capacity to dine-in, etc are recipe for resurgence of the infection and its spread,” said a health official.
State nodal officer for Covid-19, Dr Dhruva Chaudhary said social behaviour of people matters a lot when people start intermingling.
“Easing of lockdown restrictions will have a lower impact on the virus spread if people take precautions and behave responsibly. The most important measure is wearing a mask, more appropriately, a double mask which reduces the chances of transmission by 90%,” he said.
STATE RECORDS THREE DEATHS, 31 NEW CASES
Haryana on Monday reported three more coronavirus-related deaths, taking the death toll to 9,622, while 31 fresh cases pushed the state’s infection count to 7,69,770, according to the health bulletin. The new fatalities were reported from Kurukshetra, Panchkula and Gurugram.