HYDERABAD: A second wave of the Covid pandemic is possible in Telangana just as in Maharashtra if people do not take necessary precautions, Director of Medical Education, Dr Ramesh Reddy said issuing a warning for April-May period as several festivals are lined up. “We have to act now and strictly follow Covid-19 guidelines. If we don’t, we too would end up like Maharashtra and Kerala, reporting a high number of cases,” he stated.
“In the coming months of April-May, several religious festivals are slated to take place like Holi, Easter, Ugadi and Ramzan where large gatherings are possible. Elderly, children and pregnant women must be very cautious and avoid crowds and have strict mask compliance while gathering,” said Dr G Srinivasa Rao, Director, Public Health.
‘Get vaccinated’
Encouraging more people to come forward and take vaccines, Dr Srinivasa Rao noted that it was one of the best ways to prevent the second wave. “All the vaccines available in the Indian market are safe. At present, the response has not been very good, but we are seeing countries like the US and Israel see a very good response to mass immunisation and our State also needs to do that,” he said.
Dr Rao said Telangana had written to GOI to allow the State to vaccinate other groups of individuals like transport workers, shop-keepers, bank employees, teachers etc as they were coming in frequent contact with people. “Everyone must take the vaccine shot, especially if they are high-risk individuals or interact with them,” added Rao.