Indian doctors and health experts on Saturday said the COVID-19 situation across the country is still grim and it will take weeks to witness how severe the latest wave driven by the Omicron variant will be.
The federal authorities have said Omicron was causing fewer hospitalisations and deaths than the Delta variant, which killed hundreds of thousands last year.
But Dr. Mona Desai, a Pediatrician and former Chief of the Ahmedabad Medical Association said the impact of the current run-up in infections will show up within a few weeks.
“The third wave of the pandemic has already started, but, it has not peaked yet, so, people should not think maximum cases had been reported and it will start dwindling. It is not the case, you will see everyone that nearly every household is getting infected with COVID-19,” Desai added.
Several Indian cities, including the capital Delhi, have imposed curfews over the weekend and overnight to help curb the spread of the Omicron variant of coronavirus.
India reported on Saturday 337 704 new COVID-19 infections over the past 24 hours, and a daily positivity rate of 17.22%, a government statement said.
Over the period 488 people died, bringing India’s COVID-19 death toll to 488 884, the health ministry said in a statement.
