Govt warns global Covid scene disturbing, calls for stepping up precautions

Says India could be in danger zone with cases at similar levels now as the pre-second surge period

4 min read Last Updated : Dec 11 2021 | 12:37 AM IST

With usage of masks going down in the country and the Omicron variant on the rise, the government cautioned that the global scene of the pandemic was disturbing and India could be in the danger zone with Covid precautions and cases at similar levels now as the pre-second surge period. The remarks came even as seven more people, including a three-year-old — all of them in Maharashtra — tested positive for the Omicron variant on Friday, taking the total number of cases in the country to 32.

Four of the seven fresh cases were fully vaccinated. Of the seven, three had recent travel history to Tanzania, UK and South Africa. The other four patients were contacts of a Nigerian woman already confirmed as an Omicron case.

“We are operating at a risky level. We have to remember that both vaccines and masks are important. The scientific community, WHO, is warning that the time has not come to take off masks,” V K Paul, member-health, Niti Aayog, told reporters on Friday.

Paul also stressed that it is the priority of the government to ensure that primary vaccination of first and second dose is completed before any booster doses. He said the World Health Organisation too has no stance in favour of booster dose. “WHO has emphatically highlighted the need to complete primary vaccination as the most important priority. Our thinking and best understanding is also aligned with the same approach,” Paul said.

The government is keeping a close watch on more than 70 clusters of cases in the country across various districts where more infections have been seen.

Nineteen districts in India are reporting a weekly positivity between 5 and 10 per cent. Eight of these are in Kerala, five in Mizoram, two in Manipur and one each in Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.

The health ministry also highlighted that reported Covid-19 cases and deaths have doubled in Europe over the past two months.

“By and large it is the Delta variant, but we need to remain cautious. There is no need to panic, we must learn from global experiences,” Paul added.

Omicron cases in India are less than 0.04 per cent of the total detected variants. The samples will be tested against Covishield and Covaxin vaccines for efficacy. Globally, the variant has been detected in 59 countries with 2,936 confirmed and 78,064 probable cases of Omicron.

The Indian Council of Medical Research is also examining if mixing the doses of Covishield and Covaxin would produce better immunity. On the issue of booster doses, while the government has stressed that completing primary vaccination is the most important thing, ICMR’s director general Balram Bhargava said the immunity from vaccines lasts nine months to one year. “The antibody immunity lasts for this period. Cellular and mucosal immunity persists, but it is difficult to measure,” Bhargava said. India has so far administered the first dose of the vaccine to 86.2 per cent of adult population while more than 53 per cent are fully vaccinated, according to the health ministry data.

The health ministry also told Parliament on Friday that instances of fake Covid vaccination camps or fake vaccines have been noticed in Maharashtra, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh. States have been asked to increase vigilance within the supply chains and carefully authenticate the product and its physical condition before its use so as to guard against such unscrupulous activities.

While the daily cases have been below 10,000 for 14 consecutive days, more than half of the total cases in the last week were reported in Kerala.

According to sources, the cabinet secretary is expected to hold a meeting to review the Covid situation with the department of biotechnology, pharma, health ministry and Niti Aayog on Saturday.

The meeting is in the backdrop of declining daily cases in the country with some pockets continuing to have high positivity rates and the emergence of Omicron.