Editorial: Caution, the way forward

Stepping up vaccination coverage and enforcing Covid-appropriate public behaviour are the only two ways to counter the spread of the new coronavirus variant Omicron, which has higher transmissibility compared with the earlier strains. Going by the rate at which the new variant has been spreading, the possibility of a third wave hitting India cannot be ruled out but there is no need for panic and fear-mongering. Studies around the world so far suggest that Omicron is associated with mild symptoms among the infected and does not generally lead to hospitalisation, though the variant has been spreading rapidly. With Christmas and New Year approaching, concerns are being voiced over the festivities aiding the possible spread of infection. While mass gatherings and non-essential travel must be discouraged, there is no need for imposing total bans and lockdowns. Prevention remains the best bet even as virus mutations keep rendering us susceptible to the disease. Already, the pandemic has caused an estimated global loss of $15 trillion while the vaccination disparity is creating an economic wedge as richer countries recover more quickly than the less-wealthy ones. The push to the vaccination drive along with testing and tracing protocol and Covid-appropriate behaviour form the critical part of the strategy to keep the virus at bay. With elections to five State Assemblies around the corner, there is a need for extra caution. The Rt value of the virus has risen in a number of States. A value of 1 means that every infected person can infect one other person.

As of December 19, India’s national Rt value stood at 0.89, a noticeable rise from the previous week. Any rise in this value is a concern and the public health machinery should get its act together as fast as possible. While the latest data shows that Omicron has picked up pace in the country over the past few days, most of the cases originated from abroad and carried mild symptoms. It is believed that the immunity acquired from vaccination and the past infection is expected to blunt the fury of the Omicron wave. Also, the existing vaccines could be tweaked for protection against the new variant. For a country like India where full vaccination coverage is still a long way to go, the importance of precautionary measures and ramping up inoculation drive cannot be overemphasised. With a substantial number of people yet to be vaccinated, the possibility of resurgence still looms large. The emergence of the new variant confirms the warning of medical experts that Covid-19, like swine flu, could become endemic and cyclically affect the vulnerable population. Expert bodies have stressed that vaccination remains critical, especially to protect groups at high risk of hospitalisation and death. Real-time data has shown that high vaccination rates also significantly reduce the strain on health systems.