The World Health Organization on July 11 said that it is still possible to control the coronavirus outbreaks despite the rapid rise in the number of cases. The numbers have more than doubled in the past six weeks.

Citing examples of Italy, Spain, South Korea and India’s biggest slum, Dharavi, Mumbai, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO chief said that however bad the outbreak is, the virus could still be contained through aggressive action.

‘In the last six weeks cases have more than doubled,’ NDTV quoted Tedros as saying while addressing a virtual press conference in Geneva.

However, ‘there are many examples from around the world that have shown that even if the outbreak is very intense, it can still be brought back under control,’ added Tedros.

‘And some of these examples are Italy, Spain and South Korea, and even in Dharavi — a densely packed area in the megacity of Mumbai — a strong focus on community engagement and the basics of testing, tracing, isolating and treating all those that are sick is key to breaking the chains of transmission and suppressing the virus,’ he said.

Reportedly, nearly 12.3 million cases have been registered in 196 countries and territories.

‘Across all walks of life, we are all being tested to the limit,’ Tedros said, ‘from countries where there is exponential growth to places that are loosening restrictions and now starting to see cases rise.’

‘Only aggressive action combined with national unity and global solidarity can turn this pandemic around,’ he added.

As of July 11, the number of COVID-19 cases in India crossed eight lakh with 7,484 cases added in the last 24 hours.

The cases increased from seven lakh to eight lakh in just three days and now stand at 8,01,286.

India is the third worst-hit country by COVID-19 in the world, followed by the United States and Brazil.

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