Union Minister of State for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar said on Monday that the second wave of Covid-19 has not yet receded and the government was closely monitoring the States where numbers are rising.

Speaking to reporters in Pune Pawar said, “ The second wave has not ended. Many countries have faced third and fourth waves. We are on alert. Prime Minister himself is contacting States where the number of cases go up”. She said that the union government has helped States with packages for building basic infrastructure in the wake of the possible third wave.

Vaccination for children

She said that Covid-19 appropriate behaviour must be strictly followed to reduce the number of patients. Pawar said that the government was waiting for further clearance by experts so that vaccination drives could be started for children. She said that there is no specific deadline to start a vaccination drive for children.

When asked about reducing the gap between two doses of vaccines, Pawar said that the government has decided about the gap between two doses of vaccines only after consulting experts. “ The decision about the gap between doses was not taken because of unavailability of vaccines. But it was taken only after expert advice” she claimed.

Minister said that the union government will not issue blanket advice and SOPs to the State but will do so only after taking stock of the situation. She said that number of Covid-19 patients in Maharashtra and Kerala is still on the higher side.

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