COVID-19 infections are on a relentless rise in the district. From 414 cases on Wednesday, the district recorded 432 cases on Thursday taking the total caseload to 66,937.
Two deaths were also recorded in the last 24 hours, taking the toll to 564.
Meanwhile, 205 persons affected by the virus recovered and tested negative, taking the total number of recoveries to 62,931 and active cases to 3,442.
Testing affected
Meanwhile, even as cases are rising rapidly, the district has been hit by a double whammy of a shortage of vaccines on one hand and testing being stopped at a few private labs due to shortage of reagents. ‘No COVID testing’ boards were seen at a few testing centres in the city.
After receiving 55,000 vaccine doses on Tuesday, the district is yet receive fresh stocks as the vaccines were used up after the ‘Tika Utsav’.
Second dose critical
The critical aspect in the vaccination programme is the second dose. If a person is unable to take the second dose after the end of the waiting period after having taken the first dose, there might be problems with the efficacy of the vaccine. However, there is a ‘grace period’ of five to seven days between which the second vaccine dose can be taken in order to ensure its efficacy, said a senior doctor from King George Hospital (KGH).
