Warns State Govts against allowing ‘super-spreader’ events in India
A third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic is “inevitable” and “imminent”, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) said on Monday as it warned the State Governments against allowing potential “super-spreader” events like tourism activities, pilgrimages like Kanwariya Yatra and other forms of mass congregations such as Jagannath Rath Yatra.
Having lost some 800 doctors in the second wave of Covid-19 which swept the country, the apex body of medical professionals expressed concerns over the authorities and public becoming complacent about the pandemic-related norms. It urged the States to control large gatherings as these could become “potential super spreader” events.
To date, the IMA data showed that more than 1,500 doctors have died of Covid-19 since its outbreak in December 2019. The IMA’s Uttarakhand chapter has also written to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami requesting him to cancel the Kanwar Yatra this year for public safety during Covid times.
