India Coronavirus Dispatch: Is Delhi in the midst of a 'third wave'?

Delhi govt officials said that the rise is on account of improved contact tracing and targeted testing

Delhi’s ‘third wave’: On Tuesday, Delhi saw its highest spike since March when the pandemic first hit home. The previous record of daily numbers was 4,473 on 16 September. The most concerning bit is that the national capital also has high positivity rate of infection. Delhi govt officials, meanwhile, say the rise is on account of improved contact tracing and targeted testing. Further, they say, nearly 50 per cent of all cases in Delhi were coming from containment zones. Importantly, the spike in cases in Delhi has been accompanied with an increase in RT-PCR tests. Secondly, follow-up testing with RT-PCR has also gone up to 85 per cent. In September, merely 10 to 15 per cent of people who tested negative with RAT were being followed up with an RT-PCR test. Read more here

Bihar polls: Voters in Bihar, the first major election post pandemic, were asked to sanitise her hands, cast her vote and discard the gloves in the dustbin. Day one of the polls saw a turnout of 54.26 per cent. There is a surreal sense of disbelief about Covid in Bihar’s villages. Even as voters were shouted at to maintain distance and wear their face masks properly, many officers near the booth were spotted with their masks around their necks, until they spotted a camera. In villages, where masks are a rare sight, security personnel asked voters to wrap their sarees or gamchas around their faces. Little social distancing was maintained right outside the gates of some booths. At the gates, ASHA or Anganwadi workers stood holding thermometers and single-use gloves. In some booths, masks were handed out, too. Read more here

Covid survivors and their experience: Testing positive for Covid-19 triggers surprise in some and stress in most. Covid survivors share the range of emotions they underwent after testing positive for the virus. They say coping with the virus involves being locked up in a room, brings about bodily changes and even affects relationships. Patients say they were often warned by family members to not share their test results with others over a fear of social stigma. Mental trauma was experienced by many because of the ‘information overload’ surrounding the virus. Guilt was also an overwhelming factor for many as they felt responsible for family members testing positive for the virus. Disturbed appetites and sleep cycles were also oft-mentioned side effects of the disease. Read more here

West Bengal woes: The Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal is worried about the steady rise in daily Covid numbers in the state days after Durga Puja festivities. The rising death toll in some districts, coupled with people not even wearing masks in many places, has the administration anxious. While the state saw a drop in the number of active cases for a couple of days in a row, the test positivity rate has risen steadily over the last month. A month ago, on September 28, the state’s test positivity rate stood at 7.98 per cent. By October 15 this rate rose to 8.01 per cent and in the last 24 hours, it has increased to 8.17 per cent. Officials have also raised an alert ahead of Lakshmi Puja on October 30. Banerjee is likely to hold a virtual meeting with officials and ministers on November 5 to take stock of the Covid-19 situation in the aftermath of Durga Puja celebrations. Read more here

Understanding Covid

BCG vaccine: Scientists from a ICMR institute have shown that the anti-tuberculosis vaccine, BCG, can enhance the innate and adaptive immunity among elders. They say this can potentially be used as means of protecting the vulnerable section from Covid-19. The study is yet to be peer reviewed. It’s, however, one of the first trials to examine the effect of BCG in the context of Covid-19. Scientists had previously claimed that the vaccine can act as protection against the virus. The ICMR-NIRT BCG trial involved 86 people aged 60-80 years. The study could prove to be a breakthrough in terms of managing the pandemic. Read more here