New Delhi- Union Home Minister Amit Shah displayed his displeasure by saying that both the participants of the Kumbh Mela and Ramzaan have failed to adhere to the Covid-19 friendly protocols and laid out by the government to curb the spread of this deadly infectious disease. He upholds the credibility of his government's performance by saying that although the virus was spreading in a "certainly problematic" fashion, the government has taken adequate and right decisions to ensure victory in the second fight against the novel coronavirus.
"The speed at which the virus is spreading today is certainly problematic but I have full faith that we will win the second fight against the pandemic," he said.
"Whether it is Kumbh or Ramzan, there has been no Covid-appropriate behavior. It cannot happen. That is why we had to appeal and the Kumbh has now turned symbolic," said Shah in an interview.
Amit Shah denied the complacency shown from the centre's side after tacking the first wave of the coronavirus due to which patients had to struggle with shortages of hospital begs, essential medicines, and medical oxygen.
He said that whenever there is a second or a third wave, each of the waves is at least twice the size of the previous one. He added by saying though the new variant of the coronavirus is less lethal, it has the ability to spread faster.
He assures people that scientists are already studying the new mutant and will soon arrive at a point to fix the problem.
He pointed out that the states which have a large population of the diaspora are worst affected by the virus due to international travel like Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Kerela, and Delhi.
When asked about the possibility of a nationwide lockdown, Shah responded by saying that it is up to the states to decide after evaluation by the respective state governments as every state is fighting a different battle.
"If the situation is normal in Assam even after the elections, what is the need to impose lockdown there?" said Shah emphasizing on the point that different state has different means to approach the COVID situation.
When asked about the political parties carrying out rallies in the middle of the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, he responded by saying that this falls under the jurisdiction of the Election Commission.
Meanwhile, India reported 2,73,810 fresh new Covid-19 cases, making it the fifth straight day that India has recorded more than 2 lakh Covid cases in 24 hours. The highest one-day surge took the total tally of caseload to 1.5 crore mark. There have been 1,619 cases of fatalities reported in the last 24 hours in a new record high taking the total caseload past the 1.5 crore mark. This is the sixth consecutive day that India reported over a thousand daily deaths.