Omicron in India: Prepare, hope things are not as bad as in UK, says AIIMS chief in India
1 min read 20 Dec 2021, 06:39 AM ISTAIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria said that India should prepare itself for any eventuality.India's Omicron Covid count has increased to 153 after Maharashtra reported six and Gujarat logged four more cases of the new variant of coronavirus, respectively on Sunday
PremiumAmid the spike in cases of Omicron variant in the country, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Director Dr Randeep Guleria said that India should prepare itself for any eventuality.
He suggested monitoring the Omicron case spike in other countries in order to start preparing to take the edge off the virus as soon as possible.
"We should prepare and hope that things are not as bad as in the United Kingdom. We need more data on Omicron. Whenever there is a surge in cases in other parts of the world, we need to monitor it closely and be prepared for any eventuality. It is better to stay prepared than to get caught off-guard," said Dr Guleria.
India's Omicron Covid count has increased to 153 after Maharashtra reported six and Gujarat logged four more cases of the new variant of coronavirus, respectively on Sunday.
According to central and state officials, Omicron cases have been detected in 11 states and union territories -- Maharashtra (54), Delhi (22), Rajasthan (17) and Karnataka (14), Telangana (20), Gujarat (11), Kerala (11), Andhra Pradesh (1), Chandigarh (1), Tamil Nadu (1) and West Bengal (1).
Six persons tested positive for the Omicron variant of coronavirus in Maharashtra on Sunday, raising the state's tally of such cases to 54, the health department said.
While two of these patients had a history of travel to Tanzania, two others had returned from England and one from the Middle East. All five of them are fully vaccinated.
Another patient is a five-year-old boy from Junnar in Pune who is in close contact with Dubai travellers from Junnar, it said in a statement.
Out of 54 cases in the state, 22 have been found in Mumbai.
In Gujarat, a non-resident Indian tested positive for the coronavirus infection in the RT-PCR test carried out at the Ahmedabad international airport soon after he arrived from the UK on December 15.
A 15-year-old boy from Gandhinagar was also detected with the Omicron variant after returning from the UK.
On Saturday, Maharashtra had reported eight more cases, Telangana's tally jumped from eight to 20, while Karnataka and Kerala reported six and four cases respectively.
