Dikhyaa Mohanty 
The Odisha government has decided to set up 3,000 paediatric beds, including 250 ICU beds in view of a possible third wave of COVID-19.
According to the Public Health Director, Dr Niranjan Mishra stated that the Centre had put the paediatric beds need for Odisha at 600. 3000 beds will be reserved for children in COVID Hospitals, Medical Colleges, and district headquarters hospital and 250 among them will be Intensive Care Units (ICUs) or Step Down Units (SDUs).
Earlier, AIIMS-New Delhi Director Dr Randeep Guleria had stated that while children will be impacted the most during the third wave, there has been no solid evidence to prove the same. And there is a growing concern due to the unavailability of vaccines for children. Even the Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) stated that it is highly unlikely that the third wave will predominantly or exclusively affect children.
