The Covid scenario of Kerala worsened further on Wednesday as the daily number of fresh cases crossed the 30,000-mark and the TPR crossed the 19% mark after a gap of around three months.
The daily Covid deaths reported on Wednesday also remained comparatively high with 215.
As many as 31,445 fresh cases were reported on Wednesday and the TPR was 19.03% when 1.65 lakh samples were tested during the past 24 hours. The number of active cases reached 1.7 lakh.
The present surge was anticipated as the social distancing norms were literally thrown to the winds in the state during the just concluded Onam festival season. After the lockdown restrictions were eased earlier this month, commercial streets and shops in the state were witnessing a heavy rush.
Even as it was anticipated that lockdown restrictions would be again imposed in the state, a review meeting convened by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday decided to maintain the status quo for the time being.
A lockdown was imposed in Kerala for nearly three months from May after the state witnessed a second wave. But as the lockdown prolonged, the state witnessed widespread protest from various quarters, mainly traders. Many traders were also reported to have ended life owing to financial stress caused by the lockdown. This compelled the state to ease the lockdown.
The state health authorities have decided to intensify Covid testing and vaccination to contain the surge. Low seroprevalence and targeted testing strategy of testing those who are prone to infection were also cited as reasons for a high number of cases in Kerala still remaining high. With over 50% of the state's population getting vaccinated at least partially, most of the infected were not having many medical issues. Of the 1.7 active cases, only 26,582 are in hospital care.
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