India says it contains spread of COVID-19, no new cases in fifth of country (updated)

Thyrocare Technologies

28/01/2021 08:57

* No new cases in 146 of 718 districts for a week
    * Parts of India have reached herd immunity- survey,
official
    * India's cases rise to 10.7 million, vaccination at 2.4
million

 (Adds more easing of virus curbs in paragraph 6)
    By Krishna N. Das
    NEW DELHI, Jan 28 (Reuters) - India said on Thursday it had
curbed an increase in COVID-19 infections, with a fifth of its
districts reporting no new cases for a week, even as its
immunisation campaign has covered 2.4 million people.
    The country of 1.35 billion has recorded the highest number
of cases in the world after the United States, though the rate
of infection has come down significantly since a mid-September
peak. Some studies have suggested pockets of India have attained
herd immunity through natural infection.
    "India has successfully contained the pandemic," Health
Minister Harsh Vardhan said, noting that fewer than 12,000 cases
were reported in the past 24 hours.
    He said 146 of India's 718 districts have had no new cases
for a week and 18 districts for two weeks.
    "India has flattened its COVID-19 graph," Vardhan added.
    With infections falling, the government said https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1692725#.YBFjJRDqLgw.twitter
 that from Feb. 1 it would lift curbs on the use of public
swimming pools, allow cinema halls and theatres to seat more
than 50% of capacity and let all types of exhibition halls to
operate.
    The world's second most populous country started its
COVID-19 immunisation programme on Jan. 16, with the aim to
reach 300 million people by July-August.
    India has so far reported 10.7 million infections and
153,847 deaths - one of the world's lowest fatality rates from
the disease, attributed partly to its younger population.
    Thyrocare Technologies Ltd  THYO.NS , one of India's
top-three diagnostic chains, told Reuters antibody tests it had
done on more than 700,000 people showed that 55% of the
country's population may have already been infected.
    The World Health Organization says https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/media-resources/science-in-5/episode-1
 at least 60% to 70% of the population needs to have immunity to
break the chain of transmission.
    A top Indian vaccine official told Reuters he did not think
India had reached that level yet, but that even a smaller
percentage could help slow the spread of the virus.
    "Most of our highly populated districts and cities have had
their run of the pandemic by now ... and may have what you like
to call herd immunity, to an extent," Vinod Kumar Paul, who
heads a committee on vaccine strategy, said earlier this month.

 (Reporting by Krishna N. Das, Editing by William Maclean and
Toby Chopra)
 ((Krishna.Das@tr.com; +91 987111 8314;))