Thiruvananthapuram: For the last three days now,  Kerala has been reporting over 22,000 new Covid infections,  No other state in India is even close to the 10,000-mark. Chief Minster,  Pinarayi Vijayan lost his cool at the Covid review meeting over continuing increase in infection rate despite strict lockdown restrictions and asked the officials to submit an alternative to TPR-based restrictions by middle of next week.

Meanwhile, a six-member expert team from the Centre reached Kerala to study the spiralling COVID-19 cases, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the state has the capacity to administer COVID-19 vaccine to one crore people every month and will urge the Centre to provide more vaccine. The CM Pinarayi Vijayan said that as many as 25 lakh doses of the COVID vaccine can be given per week. "Going by the pace of vaccination our health infrastructure can undertake, one crore doses per month can be given. Kerala will approach the Centre to provide more vaccines," Pinarayi Vijayan said.

At the same time, there is widespread discontent over continuing lockdown, which is not producing desired results. The review meet was held ahead of the visit by a team of Union health ministry, which has expressed serious concern at the inability of the state authorities to contain the spread of the disease. Test positivity rate on Friday was 13.6, a fraction higher than previous day, while new cases stayed above 22,000, accounting for half of the country’s total.

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