COVID-19 airborne, spreads when infected people cough, sneeze or talk: Centre

The Union Health Ministry revised its COVID-19 clinical management guidelines saying that the COVID-19 virus is airborne and that it spreads when the infected person "coughs, sneezes or talks”.

New Delhi: The Union Health Ministry on Wednesday revised its COVID-19 clinical management guidelines saying that the COVID-19 virus spreads “predominantly through the airborne route and droplet released when the infected person coughs, sneezes or talks”. 

This a change from last year’s protocol which stated that the infection spreads through close contact. 

“These droplets may also land on surfaces, where the virus has been seen to remain viable for a variable duration of time depending on the type of surface. Infection can also occur if a person touches an infected surface and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth. (known as fomite transmission),” the Health Ministry’s National Clinical Management Protocol for COVID-19 stated.

Earlier, the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India issued new guidelines to check the spread of COVID-19 across the country. It said that the smaller aerosol particles can travel in the air for 10 metres, the government warned in its new "easy to follow" guidelines on fighting COVID-19.

The advisory issued by the Union government’s principal scientific adviser K Vijay Raghavan’s office stressed that wearing masks, maintaining distance, adequate sanitation and proper indoor ventilation is key to stopping the coronavirus. 

Earlier this month, the revised guidelines issued by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on the use of Remdesivir and Ivermectin, recommended that Remdesivir may be considered under special circumstances only if the patient is in the moderate to severe category requiring oxygen support.

The injection should be administered within 10 days of the positive test result. It added that the injection is not meant for home use or for someone who is not on oxygen support.

Meanwhile,  India on Wednesday once again breached the mark with 2,08,921 new cases of coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours. The country also reported 4,157 fatalities during this period, the Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry said.