Mumbai: As Maharashtra emerges from the ongoing disastrous wave of Covid-19, the state government is preparing to tackle the third wave. Earlier, the Maharashtra government had said the third wave could likely hit the state in July. Keeping in mind the changing behaviour of the virus which is also affecting children, Maharashtra minister Aditya Thackeray has suggested setting up a pediatric covid care ward, “As we prepare for 3rd wave capacity building in Maharashtra, I met AMC @SJaiswal_IAS Ji to discuss the measures we’ve undertaken in Mumbai. I have suggested to him that we create a paediatric covid care ward anticipating the next wave and the demographic it may target," Thackeray wrote. He also suggested creating a network of creches to care for children whose parents are in covid care centres and may not be able to look after them. “Along with paediatric covid care centre, another aspect we are now focussed on is to create a network of crèches for those parents who may have to be in covid care centres and may not have support to look after their children, that aren’t infected by covid," he wrote. 

A recent data by the Maharashtra health department indicated that more children are getting infected with the covid-19 in the second wave. This was not the case in earlier surges in covid-19 cases. According to the data, there has been a surge of 51%in infection among children within a month in Maharashtra. As many as 1,34,470 children as young as 10 years have been infected against 88,827 on April 3, The New Indian Express reported. More than 75,387 children were infected within 25 days in the state, which is almost a 51 per cent rise in positive cases among children.

Earlier, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said the state is prepared to deal with a third wave of the coronavirus with enough oxygen in stock. He said Maharashtra would have seen nine to 10 lakh active coronavirus cases if the state government had not imposed new lockdown-like restrictions, Thackeray said. A complete lockdown may be necessary but “I don’t think we will reach that stage," he said. His statement came in response to the Bombay High Court asking the government on Thursday if a stricter lockdown should be imposed. He also said the inoculation against COVID-19 for those above 18 years of age will start from Saturday ‘as per the availability of vaccine doses. The latest restrictions helped contain the daily spike in coronavirus cases and active cases have now stabilised at around 6.5 lakh, he said in a televised address who addressed the state on Thursday on the eve of Maharashtra’s Foundation Day said. “We will fight this coronavirus wave together like we did last year," he added.