Skip to main content

Taking All Possible Precautions, No Case of Omicron in India so Far: Health Minister in Rajya Sabha

New Delhi: No case of COVID19 variant Omicron has been reported in India so far, Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya said in Rajya Sabha during Question Hour. Speaking in the Upper House on Tuesday, Mandaviya assured that the government is taking all possible precautions including screening of international passengers at airports and doing genome sequencing.

“This new variant has been found in 14 countries. There is no case of Omicron in India yet. We are taking all possible precautions and doing genome sequencing as well”, the Health Minister said.

Contrary to the health minister’s statement, Dr. Samiran Panda, head of Epidemiology at the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) asserted that the ‘new strain is possibly already in the country and it may be a matter of time before it’s detected’. “I won’t be surprised if there’s detection in India. It’s just a matter of time, given the high transmissibility that this variant comes with,” NDTV quoted the top government expert as saying.

The B.1.1.529 Covid variant or Omicron, first detected in South Africa last week, was designated by the World Health Organisation as a ‘variant of concern’, the health body’s top category for worrying coronavirus variants.

Earlier on Sunday, the Centre had introduced stricter guidelines for people travelling from or transiting through ‘at-risk’ countries and issued a slew of directions to the states for ramping up testing-surveillance measures and health facilities. It had also decided to review the resumption of international flights.

The countries designated as ‘at-risk’ (updated as of November 26) include European countries, the UK, South Africa, Brazil, Bangladesh, Botswana, China, Mauritius, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Singapore, Hong Kong and Israel.



source https://www.india.com/news/india/breaking-no-case-of-omicron-in-india-so-far-says-health-minister-in-rajya-sabha-5117001/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

UK Makes Face Mask Mandatory As Omicron Virus Spreads, 22 Test Positive

London: Face coverings are mandatory in shops and public transport from Tuesday as part of targeted measures” to slow the spread of the Omicron variant, 22 cases of which have now been detected in the UK after Scotland and England reported further infections. Individuals linked with all new cases, identified in the East Midlands, the East of England, London, and the North West, are all isolating and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said work is underway to identify any links to travel to southern Africa. “It is very likely that we will find more cases over the coming days as we are seeing in other countries globally and as we increase case detection through focused contact tracing, said Dr Jenny Harries, UKHSA Chief Executive. The enhanced measures, announced last week as a precaution while more information is gathered and assessed on the new variant’s transmissibility and any possible effect on current COVID-19 vaccines, also include compulsory PCR tests on arrival for all int...
Post a Comment
Read more

Weekly RT-PCR Mandatory For Unvaccinated Employees In Kerala. Details Here

Thiruvananthapuram : In an effort to make everyone get vaccinated, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday said anyone not following COVID prevention measures, like vaccination, will not be provided free treatment. He also said that non-vaccinated teachers and employees who work from offices or interact with public will have to submit weekly results of RT-PCR tests. “No more free treatment for those who do not cooperate with Covid prevention measures. Non vaccinated teachers and employees who work from offices or interact with public, will have to submit weekly results of RT-PCR tests, paid for by themselves, to ensure safety of all,” Vijayan said in a tweet. No more free treatment for those who do not cooperate with Covid prevention measures. Non vaccinated teachers and employees who work from offices or interact with public, will have to submit weekly results of RTPCR tests, paid for by themselves, to ensure safety of all. — Pinarayi Vijayan (@vijayanpinarayi) November ...
Post a Comment
Read more