The third covid wave is impending and could being as early as next month. The third wave may not be as “big” as the second when the number of active Covid-19 cases had touched 91,000 in April, said BMC additional commissioner Suresh Kakani. But factors that could influence a possible third wave include the level of immunity in the population, heterogeneity across the country with more than 40 crore people vulnerable to infection, opportunities for the virus in crowds, and possibility of a variant. The Delta variant had caused the surge in second wave. Cases had shot up after Ganeshotsav in September 2020 when, due to weather change, virus activity had increased too. BMC says unskilled workers who left for their hometown during second wave restrictions are expected to come back to the city in a large number in coming weeks. “We expect the number of active Covid cases during the third wave to be between the first and second waves,” says Kakani.
