Shillong, June 4: Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma has stated that the main reason so many fatalities are occurring in the current wave of COVID-19 is due to the potency of the current strain of the corona virus, which has been dubbed as the Delta virus. He said the virus has mutated into a very potent and dangerous virus in comparison to the first wave, but was hopeful that the cases will decline in the next few days naturally as has been seen in other cities in the country.
Speaking to reporters after the review meeting here on Friday, Conrad said, “We know that this particular strain of virus is much stronger and it’s a strain that leads to the inflammation of the lungs and it’s an adaptive virus; it’s being called the Delta virus. Therefore, we are seeing a large number of lives being lost and it’s a trend that’s alarming.”
He added that the caseload keeps fluctuating because once the virus hits a person, it takes anywhere between 5-7 days for its incubation and suddenly the patient gets very serious. Because of this, fatalities are increasing even when the overall cases are declining.
“That trend being seen not just in Meghalaya but all over the country where the main reason is the natural cycle of the way the virus is,” the CM said.
Nonetheless, he said he was hopeful that in next few days the cases will decline in the State, adding that the vaccination has also helped to a large extent in bringing these numbers down. “We will naturally see the cases go down, it happened in Delhi, in Mumbai, in most of the states… As I said, it’s the natural cycle of the way the virus is. But this virus is much more potent, much more dangerous, and that’s why we have seen so many people lose their lives,” he said.
