Covid-19 restrictions, such as lockdowns, curfews, etc, saved innumerable lives in Meghalaya during the high points of the pandemic, Director of Health Services Dr Aman Warr said yesterday.
Dr Warr also brushed aside accusations that the state government was forcing reluctant people from taking the coronavirus vaccine, instead saying that they were only encouraged to do so.
The DHS said this at a felicitation programme of Covid warriors in Jaiaw here yesterday.
There have been persistent accusations by anti-vaccination group, the Awaken India Movement, that the government has been overstepping the mark in trying to get the public vaccinated. That group even opposes simple things like mandatory face mask wearing.
“We never forced the public to take the vaccination but requested them and enlightened them that the vaccination will at least protect them and decrease the severity of the illness caused by Covid-19,” Dr Warr said, adding that rumours coming from uneducated people create confusion for all.
More than 1,500 Covid-related deaths have been reported from Meghalaya since the pandemic began in 2020, with the bulk of these coming during the second wave when the vaccination programme was still in its early days of being rolled out.
Some people have died even after being vaccinated against the disease but Dr Warr said that such cases would have also had underlying comorbidities, which contributed to their deaths.
