The third wave of the Covid pandemic in India is currently spreading like wildfire, and in the last 24 hours, the nation witnessed over 1.1 lakh fresh positive cases. The third wave is driven by both the Delta and Omicron variants of the pandemic, and the number of fresh infections is expected to surge in the coming days. As the scare looms up, an IIT professor has predicted that India could witness 4 to 8 lakh daily cases by the end of January.
India facing Covid tsunami
Professor Manindra Agarwal of IIT Kanpur revealed that the third wave of the pandemic will not linger beyond March, but he strongly believes that January and February could witness a drastic rise in fresh infections.
"At the peak, India is likely to see 4 to 8 lakh cases. Strict lockdown measures will delay the wave and ensure that the pandemic lingers. But it will not burden the healthcare system," said Agarwal, India Today reports.
The emergence of twin threats
A few days back, the World Health Organization (WHO) had warned that the world is currently battling ''twin threats'', the Delta and Omicron variants of the Covid pandemic. Even though the Omicron variant is not as lethal as the Delta, it is highly transmissible, which could ultimately burden the healthcare infrastructure in various countries.
"I am highly concerned that Omicron, being more transmissible, circulating at the same time as Delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases. This is and will continue to put immense pressure on exhausted health workers, and health systems on the brink of collapse," said WHO chief Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Meanwhile, Adam Finn, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Bristol and a member of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) had recently suggested that a fourth shot of the Covid vaccine could be needed for people who fall under a vulnerable age group and with comorbidities.
