More children in India have tested positive for the COVID-19 this year than in 2020 due to the new ‘Delta’ strain of the virus. Doctors have stressed that children must be vaccinated to stem the spread of the infection.

At least 13 minors died after contracting coronavirus in the past month in the Indian state of Meghalaya, fueling panic. According to officials, more children (0-14 years) have tested positive in the state amid the so-called “second wave” of the infection. 17 children have died this year, including 13 in the past month.

The sudden spike in deaths has also baffled the state government. Meghalaya’s Health Minister Alexander Laloo Hek, taking stock of the situation, said, “we are concerned by the positivity rate among children. We are in the process of constructing three prefabricated paediatric hospitals to deal with the situation. Instructions have been passed on”.

The prefabricated hospitals will be set up in the city of Shillong, as well as the towns of Tura and Jowai. The state has recorded 43,254 COVID cases and 758 deaths so far .

Earlier in May, at least 36 young girls in two orphanages in neighboring Tripura state tested positive for COVID-19.