COVID-19 spike | Lockdown-like restrictions need to be considered, says Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray

At a meeting with senior health officials and the COVID-19 task force, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray instructed them to prepare for restrictions similar to lockdown.

Moneycontrol News

March 29, 2021 / 07:14 AM IST

CM Uddhav Thackeray says lockdown needs to be considered.

At a meeting with senior health officials and the COVID task force, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray instructed them to prepare for restrictions similar to lockdown if people continue to violate COVID-related rules.

In the meeting that took place on March 28, Thackeray said the COVID cases are rising because people are not following guidelines seriously, and that is why strict steps like lockdown are needed to be considered, reported ANI.

Maharashtra: At a meeting with senior health officials & COVID task force, CM Uddhav Thackeray instructed them to prepare for restrictions similar to lockdown if people continue to violate COVID-related rules pic.twitter.com/pMEz18UxQE

— ANI (@ANI) March 28, 2021

During the meeting, the COVID task force also expressed concerns over an increased death rate. Beds and other health facilities are also becoming inadequate due to the rapid increase in cases in the state.

Thackeray has instructed for an SOP to be drawn up, so a planned shutdown can be implemented. The CM also instructed the COVID task force to ensure an adequate supply of oxygen focus on institutional quarantine, instead of home quarantine and increase ICUs and ventilators, as mortality rates can go up, according to News 18.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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