Coronavirus India Live Updates: In view of the fast-spreading new variant, India has directed all states to aggressively test and screen international travellers from South Africa and other “at risk” countries.
Coronavirus India Live Updates: Nearly two years after the coronavirus pandemic first began, the world is now racing to contain a new coronavirus variant, B.1.1.529 or Omicron, which could potentially be more dangerous than even the Delta variant. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair a meeting with top officials on Saturday to discuss the Covid situation in the country as well as the nationwide vaccination drive.
Yesterday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) classified it as a highly transmissible virus of concern, prompting several countries, including India, to impose restrictions on travel from affected regions.
In view of the fast-spreading new variant, India has directed all states to aggressively test and screen international travellers from South Africa and other “at risk” countries. In an urgent note to state governments on Thursday, Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan had said the emergence of the new variant had “serious public health implications”, and asked them to increase vigilance.
After announcing the resumption of routine international air services from December 15, India said it would step up screening of flyers, especially those from affected countries. The government also released a list of ‘at-risk’ countries, and the nature of resumption of international scheduled flights will depend on whether a country is present in this list.
The scientific analysis till now suggests that the new variant has been spreading at a rate faster than any other variant, including Delta. The fact that several of the infected people were fully vaccinated, including one with a booster dose, is an indication that this variant also has considerable capability to evade the immune response.
Coronavirus India Live Updates: PM Modi to chair meeting on Covid situation, vaccinations today; WHO declares new Omicron strain ‘variant of concern’, Govt releases ‘at risk’ countries list ahead of resumption of international air travel. Follow this space for the latest on the Coronavirus pandemic.
A day after the WHO designated the new fast-spread Omicron strain of coronavirus as a ‘variant of concern’, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair a meeting on Friday addressing the ongoing Covid situation.
The Prime Minister will also be reviewing the pace of the nationwide vaccination drive.
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Friday night reviewed the Covid situation in Jammu and Kashmir in a meeting with top officials and stressed on strict implementation of safety guidelines to effectively prevent the resurgence of the pandemic.
During the meeting with the deputy commissioners, superintendents of police, and health officials, the LG directed that testing needs to be ramped up while ensuring that 30 per cent of the tests are RTPCR, officials said.
Sinha also said that rapid vaccination, following Covid-appropriate behaviour, community awareness, and quick execution of micro-containment zones can help tackle the surge in certain districts, they said. (PTI)
The number of West Bengal’s new Covid-19 cases and deaths has been declining for the past three days as the state recorded 710 new infections on Friday, according to a health department bulletin.
The tally went up 16,13,451 during the day while nine fresh fatalities took the death toll to 19,439. The state reported 758 and 803 new cases on November 25 and 24 respectively.
The figure was 720 on Tuesday. On Friday, Kolkata registered 183 fresh infections, followed by North 24 Parganas (142), Howrah (67) and South 24 Parganas (60) districts. (PTI)
Commercial international flights have been suspended in the country since March last year owing to the coronavirus pandemic. (File Photo)
Explained: What we know about Omicron variant of Covid-19 so far
On Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) classified a new variant of SARS-CoV-2, currently circulating in South Africa, as a ‘variant of concern’. It also named it Omicron.
The Network for Genomics Surveillance in South Africa (NGS-SA) had identified the variant on Monday. It had detected a group of related SARS-CoV-2 viruses, which belong to a lineage named B.1.1.529.
Early indications are that this variant is possibly even more transmissible than the highly infectious Delta variant, and that current vaccines may be less effective against it.
What we do know so far about Omicron?
New variants continue to emerge as SARS-CoV-2 spreads, and the significance of each mutation becomes known after a period of time. But health authorities worldwide need to keep a constant watch to identify which ones are more important than others. It was as part of such an exercise that the NGS-SA detected B.1.1.529.
From what is known currently, B.1.1.529 has multiple spike protein mutations, and preliminary analysis suggests it is highly infectious. South Africa has reported a four-fold increase in new cases over the last two weeks, coinciding with the emergence of B.1.1.529.
On Thursday, the NGS-SA said B.1.1.529 has rapidly increased in Gauteng province, which includes Johannesburg and Pretoria, and may already be present in most provinces. The NGS-SA has said the sustained increase in cases is possibly fuelled by cluster outbreaks.
Overseas flights start December 15 but new Covid fears trigger an ‘at-risk’ list
International scheduled commercial flights to and from India will resume December 15 onward after a 21-month ban, an order from the Ministry of Civil Aviation said Friday. While the move could potentially bring down fares on some high-volume flight routes, this comes at a time when international travel faces fresh uncertainty because of the new Covid-19 variant.
The government also released a list of ‘at-risk’ countries, and the nature of resumption of international scheduled flights will depend on whether a country is present in this list. It includes countries in Europe including the UK, and South Africa, Brazil, Bangladesh, Botswana, China, Mauritius, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Singapore, Hong Kong Kong and Israel. Passengers travelling from the countries in this list issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare will have to undergo additional measures upon arrival in India, including post-arrival testing.
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