Peak of second wave in Kerala over, says CM

Kerala is past the peak of the second wave of the COVID-19, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Monday, and told people not to lower their guard.

''The experts are of the opinion that the peak of the disease spread is over but we should continue to restrain ourselves, Vijayan told reporters here.

He said it is a positive sign that the average number of cases per day has started coming down as a result of the weekend restrictions, night curfews and the general caution implemented before the lockdown.

''The number of cases today is a reflection of the infection that happened a week back or earlier. The change we are seeing now suggests that the lockdown may be effective'', Vijayan said.

He urged the people to exercise caution even after the lockdown.

''The review meeting today observed that the declining test positivity rate is reassuring'', the Chief Minister said.

His statement comes as the State today reported 99,651 recoveries from COVID even as 21,402 people tested positive.

Meanwhile, 87 recent deaths were confirmed as due to COVID and the related death toll in the State is now 6,515.

''It was a day of relief. It is reassuring that there is a slight decrease in the number of active cases in the State as they have come down from 4,45,000 to 3,62,315'', he said.

The Chief Minister said strict lockdown restrictions continue. ''Triple lockdown is being implemented successfully in Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Thrissur and Malappuram districts,'' he said.

Over the last two weeks, eight districts have recorded a decline of 10 to 30 per cent. The lowest decline was in Wayanad district. In Pathanamthitta district, the prevalence of the disease is stable, he said.

However, the number of cases is increasing in Kollam, Malappuram, Thiruvananthapuram and Palakkad districts.

In Kollam, there is an increase of 23 per cent, Vijayan said.