Following a gap of around seven months, Goa reportedly recorded its first COVID-19 death on Thursday after a patient succumbed to the infection at the Goa Medical College and Hospital at Bambolim. It is learnt that the daily COVID-19 count in the state also crossed the 100 mark after a long time and as many as 108 samples tested positive in the past 24 hours.
India reportedly logged 2,151 new coronavirus cases, the highest in five months, while the active cases have gone up to 11,903 according to the Union Health Ministry data. These may not seem like alarming figures for Goa and the country and there may not be much reason to press the panic button. However the question that remains unanswered is whether the deadly disease is (God forbid) raising its ugly head again.
Nevertheless it seems prudent for the government to take necessary action to see that the number of infections does not rise. It seems necessary to find out the virus which is responsible for the present rise in the number of positive cases by carrying out genome sequencing. Genomic sequencing is used to decipher the genetic material found in an organism or virus. Sequences from specimens can be compared to help scientists track the spread of a virus, how it is changing, and how those changes may affect public health.
The public in general may again have to follow all the COVID-19 protocol like wearing the mask in crowded places and following personal hygiene. As the saying goes ‘prevention is better than cure’.
