China respiratory illnesses: Govt monitoring situation in India, risk of similar outbreak ‘ low’

The Centre has asked all states and Union territories to immediately review public health and hospital preparedness in the wake of a rise in respiratory illness in children in China. Though the risk of the spread of a similar outbreak in the country “is low”, officials said the government has decided to review preparedness against respiratory illness as “a matter of abundant caution”.

The Centre has asked states & UTs to review the availability of manpower, hospital beds, drugs and vaccines for influenza and medical oxygen to deal with a potential surge in respiratory illness.

They have also been advised to review the availability of personal protective equipment, testing kits and reagents, functionality of oxygen plants and ventilators, and infection control practices in health facilities.

The first outbreak of Covid-19 was also reported from China in December 2019. Later, the disease engulfed most of the world, including India, and caused the loss of lakhs of lives globally.

Many public health specialists accused China of trying to suppress or delay sharing of information about the outbreak which led to confusion and delayed response and allowed the disease to spread globally. This could also be a reason that this time around countries like India aren’t taking any chances, public health experts say but caution against panicking.