Is Goa staring at another lockdown amid sudden spurt in COVID-19 infected cases in the third wave? The Task Force Committee members recommended to the government to enforce night curfew but the Chief Minister Pramod Sawant ruled it out stating that the restrictions would be made more stringent.
Day by day there is increase in fresh Coronavirus positive cases but the State administration has said that imposing night curfew is on cards and instead appealed to the people to strictly follow standard operating procedure (SOP) prepared by the Government of India.
The public rallies by political parties ahead of Assembly elections, weddings and influx of large number of tourists during the festive season have also attributed to the spreading of Coronavirus in the coastal State.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who chaired a high-level meeting with Chief Ministers of States last week, also asked States to maintain momentum of the economy and to focus more on local containment. He also asked the Chief Ministers and State administrators to get all people vaccinated as it is the most potent way to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic irrespective of variants.
Early this month, the government denied entry to a Mumbai-Goa bound cruise ship to dock at the Mormugao port after as many as 66 passengers on board tested positive for COVID-19. The ship was sent back to Mumbai with 60 COVID passengers leaving behind six crew members, who tested positive and 13 negative passengers.
According to health department officials, Omicron is affecting the people faster than other variants but less dangerous than Delta strain. Also hospital admissions have not soared despite rising infection rates and it is largely due to protection against the virus conferred by the vaccines.
So far a handful of Omicron variant of COVID have been reported and the patients have recovered. As one patient had no travel history it indicated indigenous spread requiring further examination.
Since it is taking long time to receive reports of samples sent to the National institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, the Goa government has now decided to purchase a genome sequencing machine to that samples are conducted within the State and reported are received fast.
However, as precautionary measures, schools and colleges have been shut down till January 26 and the Directorate of Health Services is undertaking vaccination programme for children in the age group of 15 to 18 years and booster dose for citizens above 60 years having co-morbidities and frontline workers.
Renowned oncologist and Task Force Committee Dr Salkar has said that though there is increase in COVID-19 infected cases the patients do not require hospitalisation and that the Omicron virus is mild. But he has strongly advocated that people should follow all the guidelines and wear face masks and maintain social distancing.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has laid more emphasis on increasing vaccination coverage and to take all measures to curb the spread of Coronavirus without affecting livelihoods of the common people.
The opposition Congress has, however, held the government responsible for the spike in COVID-19 cases in the State. Goa Pradesh Youth Congress president Adv Varad Mardolkar said that the insensitive BJP government failed to learn from the past and because of it thousands of patients succumbed to the deadly infection.
Adv Mardolkar said that at least the government should now make provision in all government hospitals for COVD care facility.