‘40% new nCov cases with travel history’

Vadodara: With Covid-19 restrictions eased and economic activity gathering pace, the number of persons travelling for work, leisure or other reasons has seen a surge. This has led to a steady increase in the ratio of travellers amongst the list of new Covid-19 infections in the Vadodara.
One of the common and important questions that is asked to any suspected or confirmed Covid infected person is about his travel history in the recent past. At the beginning of the pandemic, this was done to ascertain if he had visited any affected area or state and it has become a practice since then. The question remains relevant again as the number of Covid-19 cases has risen marginally in the city and the number of cases with travel history is significant at nearly 40%.
A Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) official said that there was a time since July when it was difficult to establish any epidemiological link and the source of infection remained a mystery. “We have such cases even today, but there is a steady rise in the number of positive cases with travel history,” said an official.
Sources pointed out that in many instances, including a family in Subhanpura, several members of the same family or group travelling together had tested positive. “Travel has increased not only for leisure, but also for work,” said the official.
VMC’s medical officer Dr Devesh Patel said that the possibility of getting infected during travel was high as often people tend to let down their guard. “They may not take sufficient precautions when travelling,” he said.
Epidemiologists point out that travellers also get exposed to more people while on buses, trains or flights and at railway stations or airports. The case was the same when eating out, sightseeing or other situations. Sources, however, said that out of the 43 travellers who tested positive only two needed hospitalisation. They added that travelling should be done with necessary precautions. “Vaccination and the high number of cases in the second wave seem to have given good immunity,” said a VCM official.