Vaccine won't prevent infection, it will break chain of transmission, says AIIMS director
The second strain of Covid19 infection is rapidly spreading in the country. While the cases are on a rise, the vaccination process is also going on. However, getting vaccinated doesn't mean that a person will not get infected. AIIMS chief Randeep Guleria in IndiaTV's Swasthya Sammelan revealed that vaccination is just a weapon to fight the novel coronavirus, it does not prevent it. He further claimed that the virus can multiply in the nose and throat so it is very important to continue the covid appropriate behaviour like wearing a mask, social distancing and following other safety precautions.
The AIIMS director informed that by getting vaccinated, the impact of the virus will be minimized and there will not be any serious illness. This is why getting vaccinated is very important for all age groups. He stated that vaccines will protect from serious infection. He said, "High-risk group of people such as senior citizens, healthcare workers should be vaccinated first. Vaccine manufacturing is an ongoing process. Once we have a few more vaccine candidates available, inoculation may be opened for other age groups as well."
Also, Dr Guleria claimed that the national level lockdown is not the need of the hour but 'Test, Track and Treat' should be the main focus. He said, "There is no data to suggest that the death rate has increased in the second wave as compared to the last wave of Covid cases."
He added, "There are various reasons behind the sudden spurt in cases. In January-February, when cases started to decrease people lowered their guards as they thought Coronavirus is now on its way out. People neglected Covid appropriate behaviour which is the main reason behind the sharp rise in cases."
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Talking about the vaccines, Dr. Guleria informed that Dr Reddy vaccine and Cadilla vaccines will be available. He said that these are being produced in India. He said, "Production of vaccine needs specialised plants. Production would be increased in the next few months, it can't happen overnight."
