Arvind Kejriwal asks Centre to halt Singapore flights over new COVID strain

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday asked the Centre to stop the flights from Singapore due to a “new COVID-19 variant” found in the country. 

He said that the new variant is said to be dangerous for children and has the potential to usher in the third wave in India. 

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“My appeal to the central government: 1. Air services with Singapore to be cancelled with immediate effect 2. Priority on vaccine options should be worked out for children too,” Kejriwal’s tweet in Hindi read. 

According to a health expert, the third COVID-19 wave could target the children, chiefly because the adults are either infected or vaccinated, reported NDTV. 

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India is yet to open the vaccination drive for children.

The US, on the other hand, has authorised Pfizer and BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine for use in children aged between 12-15 years. 

In the past 24 hours, India recorded 2,63,533 new cases of COVID-19. 

Also read: 270 doctors dead in second wave of COVID pandemic: IMA

The total tally of COVID-19 cases now stands at 2,52,28,996. The death toll recorded on Monday was 4,329 increasing the total COVID-19 fatalities to 2,78,719.