50% people still not wearing masks, Union Health Ministry expresses concern

New Delhi: – Despite the grave situation during the second wave of Coronavirus pandemic, 50% of the people are not wearing masks while venturing out of their homes. The Union Health Ministry said that 64% of the people wearing masks have their masks below the nose. If you make 99% efforts and leave out 1%, there is a danger of the disease spreading, especially in the case of a contagious disease. Lav Agrawal, the Secretary of the health ministry, appealed that in the current scenario, one must strictly follow all the prescribed rules to control the Coronavirus pandemic.

266 thousand new cases and 3,874 deaths were reported in the country between Wednesday and Thursday mornings. The number of deaths is below 4,000 for the first time after four days. The number of new cases also has remained under 400 thousand for the fourth successive day. Since the last ten weeks, a consistent increase was observed in the number of Coronavirus cases reported per day. But a decline in the number of new cases has been observed since the last two weeks. The number of districts showing a decline in the number of cases has increased to 303. The number of states with more than 100 thousand active cases has also come down from 11 to 8. Lav Agrawal informed on Thursday that there are 19 states where the number of active cases has fallen below 50,000.

But still, there is a positivity rate of more than 25% in 7 states, and the rate of spread is more than 15% in 22 states. Agrawal said that as per the World Health Organisation (WHO), any rate above 5% is a cause for concern. Therefore, the states showing a reduction in the number of Coronavirus cases need to make more efforts to contain the pandemic. Observance of the rules is the most crucial factor in winning over this lethal pandemic. The most necessary step is social distancing and wearing a mask. If these rules are followed even up to 75%, the spread is reduced. But it has been observed that a simple rule like wearing a mask is not followed. Recently, a sample survey was conducted, and Agrawal presented the results in front of the media. As per the survey, 50% of the people are still not wearing masks. Also, out of the 50% wearing the mask, 64% have their masks below the nose, 20% have it on their chin, and 2% have masks around their neck. Therefore, only 14% of people are wearing masks covering the nose, mouth and chin. Agrawal pointed out that the fear of an increase in the spread of Coronavirus and another wave of the pandemic increases significantly in this scenario. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the Union Health Ministry approved home testing kits. DR Balram Bhargav of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) informed that three more companies have developed home testing kits and will be approved shortly.

The Coronavirus aerosols can travel up to 10 metres in the air

The office of Vijay Raghavan, the Chief Scientific Advisor (CSA) to the government of India, issued an advisory. This advisory warns that the aerosol of Coronavirus, meaning the fine particles released in a sneeze or a cough, can travel up to 10 metres. In this situation, there is always a chance that a person not wearing a mask can be infected without coming in direct contact with a Coronavirus patient. Even if the patient is asymptomatic, he keeps emitting the virus through the droplets released in a sneeze or cough. The droplets can travel up to 2 metres. The CSA office has said that the more refined variety of aerosols released in a sneeze or cough can travel up to 10 metres.

The necessary instructions also have been listed in the advisory, released by the office of the CSA. The droplets discharged from the nose or mouth of a Corona-positive patient stick to the surfaces. As they remain active there for a longer time, it is necessary to repeatedly disinfect doors stoppers, handles and light switches that are in regular use. The office of the CSA has also clarified that people should either use a double mask or an N-95 mask.