In a conversation with Databaaz' Govindraj Ethiraj, Ramanan Laxminarayan, Founder of Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics and Policy says stringent lockdown is likely to be extraordinarily expensive and less effective at this point in time.
He also emphasizes that taking precautions is the only short term solution to control the spread of the infection as it will take around two and a half years to even vaccinate 70% of the population.
He adds that vaccine prioritisation needs to be given to people between 45 and 75 years as case fatality rates in India are high. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh5uzByePLQ
Q: One year into the pandemic, what according to you should be the lessons for the future pandemics? Do you agree that India needs to actively put in systems for air and sewage surveillance to predict diseases much earlier?
There are many lessons here for future pandemics, including the need for better public health surveillance, diagnostic testing capabilities and research to study the transmission of diseases from animals to humans. The other lesson is that the world has to cooperate when addressing these outbreaks – and we are only as good as our weakest link. National action can only go so far in preventing transmission. https://health.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/diagnostics/widespread-lockdowns-doesnt-make-sense-now-dr-ramanan-laxminarayan/81943245
"COVID-19: Looking Back, Looking Ahead” on Manthan w/ Dr. Ramanan Laxminarayan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HRSJI0QZEU We are about six months into the pandemic which has by now caused enormous damage in health and economics. This is a good time to look back into how the pandemic has progressed, its impact on the economy and society, and how it was managed. This is also a time to look into the future and understand how it is likely to unfold and to learn lessons from the past few months.
Dr Ramanan Laxminarayan, a world authority on viruses and epidemics, will help us understand.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHho1g3QS6k