At this time last year, the number of coronavirus cases in India was steadily declining, although record numbers of infections were found in most parts of Europe, the United States and Brazil. There was no surge in cases during the holiday season in India, and even elections were held in Bihar. Normal activities are resuming, and most people mistakenly believe that the worst period of the pandemic has passed.

A year later, the situation was surprisingly similar. The number of daily cases in India is at its lowest level in 18 months. After the devastating second wave, the number of cases fell for five consecutive months, ensuring that normal activities resumed in most cases. Once again, the prevailing argument seems to be that India’s worst period may have passed. In this regard, even Europe, the United States and several other countries are currently in the most severe stage of the pandemic. However, behind these similarities are the main differences between last year and the current situation. Some of them, such as the threat from Omicron, indicate that the event may repeat itself, while others — such as the development of vaccines and even therapies — indicate that 2022 may be very different from 2021 and get better. However, so far, the uncertainty and experience of the pandemic have made it difficult for anyone to make predictions. Omicron threat

Omicron variants and Delta variants (originally called double mutants) were first discovered at about the same time last year. But unlike Delta, Omicron was quickly identified and labeled due to improvements in genetic monitoring.

For India, at least, the threat from Europe and America is very different from the threat from Delta Air Lines. The Delta variant has appeared in India and spread among the population for more than two months before being flagged. By then, it had infected many people, and when the epidemic came, India was caught off guard.

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With Omicron, India has enough early warning. Even though the actual number of Omicron infections is likely to be several times the number of more than 600 confirmed cases so far, this fast-spreading variant is unlikely to operate as freely as Delta.

The greatest comfort is that the disease caused by Omicron seems to be milder compared to Delta. All the studies so far have shown this point, and none of the studies have provided any counter-evidence.

Complete News Source : The IndianEXPRESS