A youngster gets vaccinated against COVID-19 at Nair hospital. Pic/Ashish Raje

On April 16 this year, the state had the lowest number of active cases at 626. According to CM Thackeray, COVID-appropriate behaviour is the only way to check rising cases. “Follow disciplines like physical distancing and use of masks, and get vaccinated if you don’t want restrictions,” read a statement from the CM’s Office. Thackeray said that medical experts had projected a further spike, and hence the state would be on high alert over the next 15 days.

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‘Keep field hospitals ready’

Thackeray has directed officials to keep field COVID hospitals ready for use and asked for structural audits, getting additional staff and updating basic infrastructure of such facilities. The CM asked to increase testing and verify new variants, if any, to know transmission capacity. He also directed authorities to gather information from across the world to facilitate decision making on school reopening. COVID Task Force member Dr Rahul Pandit said, “In a meeting with the chief minister, task force advocated making masks mandatory in closed spaces such as auditoriums, offices, hospitals, etc. Apart from that, senior citizens must wear a mask because they are more vulnerable to diseases due to the age factor and comorbidity. More emphasis should be given to the booster dose as it is proved to have lessened severity of the illness.”

(Inputs from Suraj Pandey)