No chance of fresh Covid wave in India, experts panel

The panel of experts from IPHA, IAPSM in their recommendations to Ministry of Health, and Family Welfare, said that at this juncture, usage of masks was also not relevant.

Hyderabad: A Covid joint task force comprising eminent public health specialists drawn from different medical organisations in the country, in a joint statement on Covid pandemic have said that India will not experience another wave driven by the Omicron sub-variants and advised that persons who were already naturally infected by Covid will not gain any additional protection from Covid booster shots.

The panel of experts from Indian Public Health Association (IPHA), Indian Association of Preventive and Social Medicine (IAPSM) in their recommendations to Ministry of Health, and Family Welfare, said that at this juncture, usage of masks was also not relevant.

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“There is no relevance of the mandate for population-wide use of masks, sanitizers or social distancing at the current level of endemicity. Individuals who have experienced natural infection due to SARS CoV-2, may not gain any additional benefits with either two primary doses or precautionary/ booster dose or any additional doses,” the public health specialists have advised.

In their recommendations, they said, “Based on the current epidemiological understanding and prevailing situation, it is likely that India will not experience another wave driven by the current Omicron sub-variants of Covid-19 that can result in significant increase in hospitalisation and complicated cases and/or deaths. This scientific evidence needs to be extensively disseminated to educate the masses.”

The next wave in India with significant public health impacts may happen only in the unlikely event of major mutations in the virus that have unforeseen levels of immune-escape properties capacity to overwhelm naturally acquired immunity. At present, there is a need to take-up more genomic sequencing and put the relevant information in public domain to build the confidence in the community.

Vaccination should be recommended for those having co-morbidities or never had Covid. Unnecessary and irrational use of vaccination against Covid will divert resources and attention from other pressing public health tasks, they added.

Meanwhile, the researchers from IIT-Hyderabad and IIT Kanpur, who has developed the SUTRA model for forecasting pandemic, including Dr Manindra Agrawal from IIT-Kanpur and Dr M Vidyasagar from IIT-Hyderabad, termed the recommendations from the public health as voice of sanity.