Covid XBB.1.5 variant not dangerous in India due to 90% vaccination rate: Doctor

Dr. M. Wali, a physician at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in New Delhi, said on Sunday that the new Covid variant of XBB.1.5 is not virulent in India because 90% of the eligible population has been immunised, providing some solace amid a surge of Covid cases in nations like China, Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea.

“These new variants including XXB.1.5 are not more virulent in India as our 90 per cent eligible population are vaccinated and 30-40 per cent have administered booster doses,” he said. Taking note of three Covid-infected international passengers who flew down to Gujarat from Australia and China, Dr Wali said, “Three international passengers including passengers coming from Australia and China. found positive. In Rajkot, a woman and her fiancee have been found infected. Both were coming from abroad with their two-year-old daughter.”

Rightly stressing immunities’ importance to fight against the virus, Dr M Wali said, “A booster dose, good immunity, first infection, vaccination, altogether minuscules the virulence of the virus. Persons infected with these viruses, do not need to be admitted to a hospital, they just need to be isolated and their samples should be sent for genome sequencing.”

Dr. Wali referred to review conferences held by Mansukh Mandaviya, the Union Health Minister, and PM Modi’s 4Ts of Test, Track, Treat, and Teeka. “Be cautious, don’t step outside unnecessarily, keep your elder and children isolated. Follow Covid-appropriate behaviour and most importantly mask up.”

The Union Health Ministry mandated RT-PCR reports earlier this month for all foreign passengers flying from China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Thailand to India. Starting on January 1, 2023, these passengers must upload their data to the Air Suvidha portal.

Additionally, regardless of the point of departure, all overseas travellers were subjected to a random 2-percent test upon arrival in India. It was claimed that the test ought to have been done 72 hours after starting the trip to India. The choice was made in light of how the COVID-19 situation was changing around the globe, particularly in the aforementioned countries.