Amid downward trend in COVID cases, Yogi government prepares for third wave, black fungus infection

NOIDA: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said the state government is alive to the possibility of a third wave of Covid-19 and the spread of black fungus infection among cured patients and is readying itself to tackle them.

He said the state government is focusing on ensuring awareness and treatment of the black fungus infection, which has emerged as a "challenge" for the people who have recovered from Covid-19.

Apprehensions have been expressed about a possible third wave of the coronavirus in the state, Adityanath said, adding "the government is already preparing an action plan to effectively check the third wave".

The chief minister made these remarks while addressing reporters during his visit to Noida to review the Covid-19 situation.

Mentioning the "new challenge" of black fungus infection among cured Covid patients, the chief minister said the state government has issued an advisory regarding it besides conducting virtual meetings with health officials and medical colleges in every district.

The chief minister talked of the black fungus infection or mucormycosis a day after AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria attributed the new malady to the misuse of steroids in the treatment of Covid-19 patients and asked hospitals to follow the infection control protocols.

"It has been seen that secondary infections -- whether fungal or bacterial -- are causing more mortality. This disease, mucormycosis, can affect the face, infecting the nose, the orbit of the eye or the brain which can even cause vision loss. It can also spread to the lung," Guleria had said on Saturday.

Talking of his government preparedness to tackle the possible third wave of Covid-19, which, he said, is feared to be affecting children more, the chief minister said, "Every district administration has been asked to prepare a dedicated hospital for women and children."

"We have 2,220 ambulances of 102 service which are dedicated for women and children and for their emergency services besides providing them telephonic consultation from these hospitals," he said.

The chief minister said arrangements are also being made to set up paediatric intensive care units (ICU) in every district and every medical college amid the apprehensions of an impending third wave.

"In the case of Covid-19, we have been able to keep the CFR (case fatality rate) lower than one per cent. Similarly, for black fungus, there should not be any problem if its timely treatment is ensured," the chief minister said.

"The government's advisory also calls for a comprehensive awareness campaign to inform people about the cause, symptoms and treatment of black fungus," Adityanath said.

The government is quickly working on ensuring treatment of black fungus in all districts of the state, he added.

Uttar Pradesh has fought encephalitis and reduced mortality rate by 95 per cent from 2017 to 2020, hence the state has over these years improved medical resources in districts of its eastern region, he said.

Meanwhile, the COVID-19 death toll in Uttar Pradesh rose to 17,546 with 311 more fatalities while the infection tally climbed to 16,19,645 as 10,682 fresh coronavirus cases were reported, officials said on Sunday.

Of the fresh deaths, Meerut reported 27 followed by Lucknow (20), Kanpur (13), Chandauli and Basti (12), Mathura (10), the state government said in a statement.

At 701, the maximum number of new cases were reported from Meerut followed by Lucknow (525), Varanasi (496), Deoria (471), Bulandshahr (451) and Saharanpur (437).

In the last 24 hours; 24,837 COVID-19 patients have recovered from the disease taking the total number of patients discharged so far in the state to 14,39,096.

The number of active COVID-19 cases in the state stands at 1,63,003; the statement said.

More than 2.67 lakh samples were tested in the last 24 hours.

So far, over 4.46 crore samples have been tested in the state, the statement said.