Covid-19: Rise in R-value cause for concern, says AIIMS chief

New Delhi, August 1

Days after the Home Ministry warned the state over the rising reproduction number of coronavirus, Dr Randeep Guleria, AIIMS Director, today said the situation was a matter of concern.

In the last few days, the R0 (reproductive number) of the virus has gone up from 0.96 to more than 1, which means one infected person can now transmit the disease to more persons, Guleria said.

He reiterated the need to go in for urgent containment in 46 districts of the country that are showing more than 10 per cent positivity rate.

Experts have further said 53 districts with 5 to 10 per cent positivity must also consider strict movement control and crowd management.

Total vaccine doses administered have crossed 47 crore.

The Health Ministry has asked 10 high Covid burden states of Kerala, Maharashtra, Karnataka, TN, Odisha, Assam, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Andhra and Manipur to go in for lockdowns. — TNS

Mandaviya hits back at Rahul

Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya replied to a tweet by Cong leader Rahul Gandhi, who had posted a Twitter hashtag “Where are vaccines” and said, “July is gone, but the shortage of vaccine hasn’t.” Mandaviya said, “More than 13 crore doses were administered in July. We are proud of our healthcare workers. Now you too should be proud of them.”