Kerala says 'curve flattened'

Kerala has flattened the coronavirus curve in 100 days after the first case was confirmed, state Finance Minister Thomas Isaac said, a day after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the state had been successful in containing the virus in January, when the first case was reported, and during the second wave of infections in March. In his tweet Isaac also reiterated the Chief Minister's statement that with only 16 active cases in hospitals across the state, the government was bracing itself for a third wave of infections. "It has been 100 days since the first Covid-19 case was reported in Kerala on January 30... We could contain the spread at that stage. The second phase started in (the first week of) March. Today, after two months, we have managed to flatten the curve," Chief Minister Vijayan said. "Our recovery rate is comparable to the highest in the world. We are doing everything to avoid a third phase but we are prepared for any situation," he added, while also cautioning people to be "more careful in the coming days" given the expected return of thousands of Kerala residents stranded abroad.