Omicron in India: 10 latest developments

As India reports the first two omicron patients from Karnataka, state governments have ramped up restrictions. While Maharashtra and Karnataka have revised rules at the airport, the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu have imposed night curfew.

What is happening in India on the Omicron front? Here are 10 latest developments you need to know.

1. 10 SUSPECTED SOUTH AFRICAN TRAVELLERS MISSING IN KARNATAKA

The health department of Karnataka is caught in a tricky situation as 10 travellers from South Africa, suspected to be infected with the omicron variant, have gone missing. The health department tried contacting them, but their mobile phones have been switched off. The address given by them upon arrival at the airport also turned out false. The health department has approached the police to trace these 10 individuals.

2. 12 OMICRON SUSPECTED PATIENTS ADMITTED IN A DELHI HOSPITAL

12 patients suspected omicron-positive have been hospitalised in New Delhi’s Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan hospital. Eight people were admitted to the hospital yesterday. Four patients were admitted today, out of which two have tested positive while the result of the other two is awaited. The samples of all four patients will be sent for genomic sequencing today.

3. NEW AIR TRAVEL RULES IN KARNATAKA

Travellers to Bengaluru International Airport saw new guidelines in force from Wednesday as the state reported the country’s first omicron cases. As per new rules, all the international travellers will have to upload a negative Covid-19 RT-PCR report 72 hours prior to their journey, a self-declaration form and a vaccination certficate on the Air Suvidha portal. Upon arrival, they will have to show all these to health officials at the airport.

4. MAHARASHTRA REVISES AIR TRAVEL RULES

International travellers from three high-risk countries - South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe will have to go for mandatory institutional quarantine for seven days upon arrival. On the seventh day, they will be tested for Covid-19 and if found positive, they will be sent to the hospital. The ones who test negative will go on a seven-day home quarantine.

5. NIGHT CURFEW IN DADRA AND NAGAR HAVELI, DAMAN AND DIU

As a precautionary measure against omicron, the Union Territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu have imposed a night curfew. The curfew would start from Thursday, 11 pm-6 am, and be in force till December 31.

6. NO LOSS OF SMELL OR TASTE IN OMICRON PATIENTS 

The new omicron variant has milder symptoms as seen in cases in South Africa. There is no loss of smell and taste, stuffy and blocked nose, elevated pulse rate, low oxygen levels, all of which were present in the delta variant, South African doctor Angelique Coetzee has said. In all, the omicron variant will have mild symptoms like headache, body ache, scratchy throat or a mild fever for a day, Dr Coetzee said.

7. VACCINATED INDIVIDUALS EXHIBIT MILD SYMPTOMS

Dr Angelique Coetzee said that those inoculated with both doses of the Covid-19 vaccine exhibit symptoms milder than the unvaccinated ones. She said that vaccines will protect people from the omicron variant irrespective of age and comorbidities.

8. SEVERITY OF COVID VARIANT COULD BE LOW IN INDIA

The government has said that given the pace of vaccination and the exposure to delta variant of Covid that has also led to a higher seropositivity rate, the severity of omicron variant in India can be low, Reuters reported early afternoon today.

9. BOOSTER DOSE BEING STUDIED

The government on Thursday said that the scientific study on the requirement of booster doses in fully vaccinated people is being studied. The priority of the government at present is to get the population fully vaccinated; a strategy which the government says gives the best results.

10. AFRICA APPRECIATED BY WHO

WHO director Dr Matshidiso Moeti said that Botswana and South Africa, the two African countries have ‘bought the world time’ through quick testing, detection and reporting of the new variant of coronavirus. This gives the countries around the world ample time to scale up efforts to prevent the virus from spreading.