Covid-19 Third Wave Likely By August, But Less Severe Than Second: ICMR

17 Jul, 2021 15:37 IST|Sakshi Post

The Covid-19 third wave is expected to strike India by the end of August and will be less severe than the second wave, according to the ICMR.

The third wave of Covid-19 might potentially be triggered by governments' early relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions, according to Panda.

The third wave of Covid-19 is "inevitable and imminent," according to the Indian Medical Association, which has asked state governments to prohibit mass gatherings because they might become "potential super spreader" events.

New Delhi: A senior doctor has said that the third wave of Covid-19 might strike India by the end of August and will be less lethal than the second. "There would be a nationwide third wave, but that does not mean that it would be as high or as intense as the second wave," Dr Samiran Panda, the Indian Council of Medical Research's director of epidemiology and infectious diseases, told the media outlet.

Samiran Panda also highlighted four factors that might lead to the third wave of Covid-19, including a decline in people's immunity to the coronavirus illness they contracted in the first and second waves of the pandemic. "If that goes down, it could lead to a third wave," Panda warned the people.

He also suggested that a coronavirus variation may circumvent acquired immunity and that if the new variant fails to do so, it could quickly spread across the population. The third wave of Covid-19 might potentially be triggered by governments' early relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions, according to Panda.

When asked if Delta Plus might bring on the third wave, Panda said, "I'm not expecting any more public health havoc from the Delta variant,"

Panda's comments come as Dr Randeep Guleria, director of the All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), said on Thursday that waning immunity among people, the emergence of a more transmissible variant of the coronavirus, and government relaxations in lockdown curbs could all contribute to a possible third wave of Covid-19.

Several research and simulations have been undertaken, according to Dr Guleria, to forecast the probable third wave's course under various circumstances. "One such model from an IIT shows that if all restrictions are lifted and if a virus (variant) is also able to escape immunity, then the next wave could be bigger than the second wave. If some restrictions are kept and the virus also remains stable, then cases will not be much and if we keep more restrictions, then cases will be further reduced," a news agency quoted him as saying.

The Indian Medical Association stated earlier this week that the third wave is "inevitable and imminent," and that state governments should prohibit big gatherings because they might turn into "potential super spreader" occurrences.

"However, it is painful to note that at this crucial time, when everyone needs to work for the mitigation of the third wave, in many parts of the country, both governments and the public are complacent and engage in mass gatherings without following Covid protocols," IMA stated in a statement on July 12.

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