As China continues to report a massive spike in cases, a chorus is growing in India to ban flights from China. But questions remain on the travel ban as the Omicron variant driving up cases in China were already reported in India.
New Delhi,UPDATED: Dec 22, 2022 11:45 IST
Dr Randeep Guleria said that the travel ban makes no sense (Photo: File)
By Sneha Mordani, Shiv Aroor: ‘Ban flights from China’ chorus is growing as the country continues to report a surge in cases owing to sublineage BF.7. Congress MP, Manish Tewari has been at the forefront of this demand.
A survey conducted by LocalCircles also showed that those surveyed were in favour of travel to and from China being halted for the time being, given the uncertainties surrounding the infection and the manner in which China continues to give a rather inaccurate picture of the real crisis in the country.
The fact is that the variant causing mayhem in China has already been reported in India. “The travel ban makes no sense as the variant was reported in India as early as September,” Dr Randeep Guleria, former director of AIIMS, told India Today.
He also said that the infection has spread here to an extent, and the need is to improve the genome sequencing of positive samples from India to identify the nature of the variant.
“For this reason, people must come forward and do RT-PCR tests if they are showing symptoms of the infection,” he said.
Positive samples are sent by states for genome sequencing, which then helps determine the variant and its mutations.
India, like many countries, has been lax about genome sequencing, given that cases are low and the RT-PCR tests being done are minimal.
Read | China’s Covid scare: Is India prepared?
Dr Guleria, who has been at the forefront of India’s fight against the pandemic, has also stated that banning public gatherings and avoiding social gatherings is no longer necessary.
“Mask up if you are going to a crowded place, there is no need to avoid get-togethers yet,” he said.
Dr Guleria also advised senior citizens and vulnerable individuals with compromised immunity to be cautious.
“We are, however, in a good place now,” he said.
“Replication of what happened in China is unlikely in India. We enjoy hybrid immunity, and we have had the experience of the Delta Wave, which has given us an idea about the pressure on the healthcare system,” Guleria explained.
The Center has also requested that the Covid protocol be followed but has not imposed any specific restrictions. In a high-level meeting held on Wednesday, the Union Health Ministry said that Covid is still here and that we can’t let our guard down.
Read | No rise in Covid cases but we must be vigilant: Ex-AIIMS chief Dr Randeep Guleria
