PANAJI: Director of health services Dr Ira Almeida said on Tuesday that although Goa has started seeing a decline in cases since last week, it cannot be said the third wave is ebbing.
“The cases have dropped (but) so also the number of tests,” she said. “We will have to wait for a week to see if the cases are really dropping. Fewer cases have been reported in the last few days, so perhaps the covid curve is plateauing.”
If the number of tests conducted per day was in the same range as the last week, Almeida said, it could have been deduced with certainty that cases have been decreasing. “Today (Tuesday), the number of positives is more than yesterday,” she said.
Normally, Goa sees fewer cases on Sundays and holidays, when most testing centers are closed.
In the past three or four days, the number of tests per day has ranged between 3,000 to 5,000, while earlier, 7,000 to 8,000 or more tests were done per day. On Tuesday, 1,794 new cases were recorded for 5,597 tests, whereas on Sunday, 4,273 tests were conducted and 1,387 tested positive.
After January10, the state’s daily average of new infections was 3,635 as the state recorded the sharpest rise in cases. The numbers have started dropping since Friday, and the daily case count went below the 2,000-mark from Sunday, corresponding to the dip in the tests. The highest single-day rise of the third wave so far has been 3,936 cases on January 19.
Experts had estimated that in Goa, the third wave would take a downturn by the end of January or latest, by the first week of February. As declared by the health services, the third wave made its beginning in Goa on December 28.
Second dose for kids from Jan 31: DHS
The directorate of health services will start vaccinating children in the 15-18 age group with the second dose from January 31. Around 80% of the eligible children have been vaccinated with the first dose so far, director Dr Ira Almeida told TOI.
Almeida said that they have also received stock to begin administering the second dose to eligible children, which is to be given four weeks after the first dose. Regarding the precautionary dose, she said, they have received tremendous response from senior citizens, and 30% have already taken the third dose.
On Tuesday, over 2,000 people were vaccinated in the general category, 772 were administered precautionary doses, and 21 children their first dose.
“The cases have dropped (but) so also the number of tests,” she said. “We will have to wait for a week to see if the cases are really dropping. Fewer cases have been reported in the last few days, so perhaps the covid curve is plateauing.”
If the number of tests conducted per day was in the same range as the last week, Almeida said, it could have been deduced with certainty that cases have been decreasing. “Today (Tuesday), the number of positives is more than yesterday,” she said.
Normally, Goa sees fewer cases on Sundays and holidays, when most testing centers are closed.
In the past three or four days, the number of tests per day has ranged between 3,000 to 5,000, while earlier, 7,000 to 8,000 or more tests were done per day. On Tuesday, 1,794 new cases were recorded for 5,597 tests, whereas on Sunday, 4,273 tests were conducted and 1,387 tested positive.
After January10, the state’s daily average of new infections was 3,635 as the state recorded the sharpest rise in cases. The numbers have started dropping since Friday, and the daily case count went below the 2,000-mark from Sunday, corresponding to the dip in the tests. The highest single-day rise of the third wave so far has been 3,936 cases on January 19.
Experts had estimated that in Goa, the third wave would take a downturn by the end of January or latest, by the first week of February. As declared by the health services, the third wave made its beginning in Goa on December 28.
Second dose for kids from Jan 31: DHS
The directorate of health services will start vaccinating children in the 15-18 age group with the second dose from January 31. Around 80% of the eligible children have been vaccinated with the first dose so far, director Dr Ira Almeida told TOI.
Almeida said that they have also received stock to begin administering the second dose to eligible children, which is to be given four weeks after the first dose. Regarding the precautionary dose, she said, they have received tremendous response from senior citizens, and 30% have already taken the third dose.
On Tuesday, over 2,000 people were vaccinated in the general category, 772 were administered precautionary doses, and 21 children their first dose.
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