Modi government Slammed by the Lancet journal for ignoring the second wave's warnings.
The Lancet's commentary is in line with concerns among multiple experts within and outside india about the leadership and policy-making apparatus that has pushed india into its current crisis. The IMA, representing over 350,000 doctors nationwide, said the Union health ministry's failure to prepare the necessary roadmap to ensure sufficient vaccine stocks had resulted in a shortage of vaccine doses. A survey by the indian Council of Medical Research in january suggested that only 21 per cent of the country's population had acquired immunity against Covid-19, implying that the vast majority of people remained susceptible. The journal said the country should also expand genome sequencing to better track, understand and control the emerging and more transmissible coronavirus variants. It also called on the government to introduce a "well-planned, pre-announced national lockdown" rather than lockdowns for 10 to 15 days in some states. The health ministry has already asked states with high daily case numbers and hospital bed occupancy greater than 60 per cent.