Arvind Kejriwal asks Centre to cancel flights from Singapore over virus strain 'very dangerous' for kids

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal asked the Centre to cancel all air services between India and Singapore with immediate effect, saying a new strain of the 2019 SARS coronavirus found in the country is said to be “very dangerous” for children.

“This new strain of virus could invade India in the form of a third wave,” he said in a tweet in Hindi.

“The new form of coronavirus in Singapore is said to be very dangerous for children. It could reach Delhi in the form of a third wave. My appeal to the Central government: 1. Cancel all air services with Singapore with immediate effect 2. Work on vaccine alternatives for children on a priority basis,” Kejriwal added in the tweet.

सिंगापुर में आया कोरोना का नया रूप बच्चों के लिए बेहद ख़तरनाक बताया जा रहा है, भारत में ये तीसरी लहर के रूप में आ सकता है।

केंद्र सरकार से मेरी अपील:
1. सिंगापुर के साथ हवाई सेवाएं तत्काल प्रभाव से रद्द हों
2. बच्चों के लिए भी वैक्सीन के विकल्पों पर प्राथमिकता के आधार पर काम हो

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) May 18, 2021

According to AFP, Singapore had announced on Tuesday that it would be closing schools from today as a new coronavirus strain like the one first detected in India were affecting more children in the city-state.

The government has been tightening restrictions following a recent rise in local transmissions after months of near-zero cases.

The Delhi chief minsiter’s remarks also come amidst reports of over 1,000 children testing positive for the virus in Uttarkhand in a period of seven days, and over 3,000 since April.

A report published in Free Press Journal in April, based on data shared by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, said nearly 80,000 children were infected by the virus between 1 March and 4 April. Of the 79,688 infected children, 60,684 children were from Maharashtra, 5,940 from Chhattisgarh, 7,327 from Karnataka and 3,004 chidlren from Uttar Pradesh.

While vaccine manufacturers are studying if the already developed vaccines can be used on children , there is no timeline available as to when would such vaccines become available for mass immunisation.

As far as vaccines go, India doesn’t have a vaccine for children under 18. The DCGI has approved clinical trials of Bharat Biotech’s COVAXIN among children, but that would take months to complete.

Globally, the only vaccine that has been approved for children is Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine for children between the ages of 12 and 15 years.

With agency inputs