Health Ministry says COVID-19 herd immunity not possible in India. Here is what it means

Delhi and Mumbai's serosurveys pegged that more than a quarter of the population in both of the cities had sufficient antibodies against the infection, which made experts believe that these cities had surpassed the worse and were on their road to recovery. This also made many believe that many cities in India will recover in the same way. However, the Health Ministry refuted the claims, adding that mass vaccination would be the only possible way for a community to cope with the surge.

"Herd immunity is indirect protection from disease. This saves a population from disease. But it develops when a vaccine is developed or when a population has already suffered and recovered from it. Herd immunity in India is not an option. It can only happen after a vaccine has been developed," a Health Ministry official said.

The Health Ministry also added that pinning our hopes on herd immunity through any other way is not a viable option and may prove to be costly and is not all feasible.

“For a large country like India, herd immunity cannot be a strategic choice or a strategic option... It will come at too high a cost and can be done only through immunisations via vaccination,” Rajesh Bhushan, special officer, Ministry of Health was quoted as saying.