3rd COVID-19 wave might not be as severe as the 2nd wave: AIIMS chief

New Delhi: Director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, Dr Randeep Guleria on Saturday said that the third wave of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) would not be as bad as the second wave, however, warning that it depended on the people following Covid-appropriate behaviour.

Dr Guleria made the remarks at Gitam Institute in Visakhapatnam, where he received the institution’s Foundation Day award in recognition of his services.

Noting that the only unpredictable part was how the virus would behave, Dr Guleria said, “But I don’t think that we will see a third wave which will be as bad as the second wave,” news agency PTI reported.

When commenting about the possibility that more children could be infected in the third wave of Covid-19, the AIIMS chief said that children were not being vaccinated against the disease and so would be “more susceptible.” Currently, the scope of India’s Covid-19 vaccination drive is confined only to people above 18 years of age.

“The general feeling is that adults are getting vaccinated, children are not being vaccinated and therefore if there is a new wave it will affect those who are more susceptible. Children will be more susceptible,” he said, mentioning why children might be more exposed. Further he also pointed out that more than half of the children have already been infected by the coronavirus, according to the sero survey, and currently possess antibodies against the disease. He also expressed hope that a Covid-19 vaccine for children would also be coming up in a month or two, so that they could also be immunised against the disease.

As far as the vaccines are concerned, Dr Guleria said that the jabs were still effective in preventing severe cases of the infection. He also highlighted that people getting reinfected even after the vaccinations are only experiencing mild infections, with the vaccines offering protection from severe cases. “Vaccines are helping in preventing severe disease and death from Covid-19. Infections are still happening but those infected are predominantly those who have not been vaccinated. That’s why we are saying more and more people need to get vaccinated,” he said. “Those getting infected even after vaccination, what we call breakthrough infection, are predominantly getting milder infection. So vaccines are effective in giving protection from severe disease,” he added.