Kerala’s Covid defence is falling apart
The fight against Covid-19 is a marathon, not a sprint, declared Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan recently, fending off criticism and defending his government’s strategies to contain the pandemic. Rightly said, but there’s a nagging feeling that his government, praised for its initial response to the viral outbreak and seemingly content with its brief moment of glory, may have been guilty of slackening the vigil, ignoring the three key requirements to win a marathon—endurance, perseverance and patience.
Currently, infection is spreading at a rapid rate, and recoveries have fallen below 50%. Worryingly, more than 75% of the new cases these days are due to local transmission. Clearly, Kerala’s Covid defence is falling apart, and the government needs much more than mere statements or PR exercises to remedy the situation.
The situation today calls into question the government’s strategy of home quarantine for those who came in after lockdown relaxations kicked in and relatively low testing numbers that preceded the current phase. The unlocking process should have been accompanied by tightening vigil. To give credit to the CM, he kept warning about the impending threat and the perils of underestimating the virus. Sadly, the sentiments didn’t reflect on the ground.
The government’s decision to hold the entrance test for admissions to professional courses has been an ill-advised one—six students and two parents have tested positive so far. In terms of parameters such as case fatality and test positivity, Kerala still ranks way better than many others. But it currently has one of the highest rates of increase in cases.
How the testing numbers have improved from 7,000/day early this month to nearly 20,000/day now shows the government has woken up to the seriousness of the situation, but since these numbers also include repeat tests, it isn’t clear how many new people are tested every day. For a state that has been bragging about being a model for others not so long ago, comparisons with those which are struggling to deal with the virus should bring no relief. It must ramp up its defences, avoid misadventures and, more importantly, further reinforce testing and treatment facilities if it wants to remain a model.