Stages of coronavirus that you should know about. Which stage is India at?

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research, India is at Stage 2 level and reportedly, the source of the infection can be tracked and contained. Currently, the country is observing severe actions to avoid the widespread transmission of the virus outbreak. Check out the different stages of coronavirus infection in various countries of the world and why social distancing is important at this point. 

Stage 1 of coronavirus

An Indian Council of Medical Research official explained the stages of the countries with regards to the disease outbreak in an interview. Stage 1 indicates the stage where the infection is only limited to those who have travelled to virus hit countries and have tested positive.

Stage 2 of coronavirus

Stage 2 indicates when the infection is locally transmitted. The transmission is either from those who are close to the family of the infected patient or the people he or she has come in contact with. In this case, the source of the infection is known and can be located.

Image courtesy: CDC 

Stage 3 of coronavirus

Stage 3 refers to community transmission where the source of the infection can no longer be identified. When a region is considered at Stage 3, it means that a person can test positive even when there is no exposure to the infected person or any foreign travelling patient.

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Stage 4 of coronavirus 

Stage 4 is when the disease is considered an epidemic and there is a severe outbreak.

Coronavirus stages in India

India is currently at Stage 2 of disease transmission currently. The ICMR chief mentioned that there is a month window for the country to halt the rising curve of the infection transmission in the country, otherwise India will soon come at Stage 3.

Coronavirus stages of other countries

Stage 3 marked countries include Italy, Spain, France and Belgium, South Korea, Iran, Malaysia, The United Kingdom, Ireland, Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Monaco, San Marino, and Vatican City. 

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Janta Curfew and Maharashtra Lockdown

With the Coronavirus positive cases rising in India, PM Narendra Modi has appealed to the citizens of India to practice Janta Curfew on March 22 from 7 am to 9 pm. This curfew aims to control the number of coronavirus positive cases that are rapidly growing in the country. Currently, the positive cases in the country have surpassed 270 (Source: Ministry of Family & Welfare) with the maximum number of cases recorded in Maharashtra (63 as of March 21). 

Janta Curfew’s sole purpose is to encourage people to adopt social distancing. It will show the collective determination of the country to break this community transmission of the virus. Even a single day of universal social distancing would help bring down the transmission of the virus to a huge extent. India’s strategy to fight with the virus is currently based on containing the outbreak as much as possible.

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Pic courtesy: WHO website

Maharashtra Lockdown

Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray ordered a partial lockdown of the state where all shops, private offices, crowded temples,  and commercial establishments are ordered to remain shut in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur till March 31, although essential services like groceries, pharmacies, and banks are exempt from this lockdown. Even government offices are ordered to remain shut with only 25% manpower on a rotation basis, while transportation will operate as usual. 

Will social distancing help?

WHO advises the public to practice social distancing to mitigate virus transmission and make the transmission as low as possible. Maintaining a distance of 3 feet between you and anyone who is coughing or sneezing, as when someone coughs or sneezes, they spray small droplets, which may or may not contain a virus, so if someone is in close vicinity of them, they can inhale the droplets and get easily infected. Social distancing would help you prevent that.

Coronavirus update: Latest update as of March 21

Confirmed Cases- 282,742

Active cases - 177,413

Recovered cases - 93,509

Deaths - 11,820

Data source: worldometers (last updated: March 21, 2020, 10:45 GMT)

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