India: Citizens must remain cautious of new variant Omicron

Kanpur: A mild third wave of new variant Omicron of Covidvirus-19 is likely to peak in India between January and February next year, claimed Professor Manindra Agrawal of IIT here.

This will be around the Assembly elections in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur respectively.

Cautioning the citizens he said that they must remain careful.

In contrast to a South African research study, Manindra Agrawal said that Omicron does not seem to be bypassing natural immunity from Covid in any significant way.

He also remarked that, across the globe, the Omicron variant is not directing to critical cases but only mild infection.

The data collected so far suggests that the variant has only mild symptoms, even as its transmissibility appears to be high, he added.

He pointed out a third wave in the country is nearly certain; however, how bad it will get will depend on how the government tackles it.

He recommended mild lockdowns (night curfew, restrictions on crowding) to control the spread of the virus and reduce the peak value.