Opinion
Can Omicron Spread Derail India’s Economy? The speed of spread and the mistaking of the illness for other minor respiratory illnesses both have the potential to quickly affect workforces in offices. This, in turn, can have a debilitating effect on the economy, which is one of the best-performing ones in the world. Explains more
Dr Vikram Vora, Medical Director, International SOS (India)
With Omicron cases surging in India (nearly 1,500 cases), the healthcare infrastructure in India is gearing to meet this threat posed by this new COVID-19 variant, which has brought life to a standstill in some parts of the developed world. One of the things to be noted about Omicron is the speed of its spread. From November 23, 2021, when a new COVID-19 variant was first reported from South Africa to December 23, 2021, when this variant was detected in over 106 countries, the march of Omicron has been relentless. As it continues to drive record-breaking case
numbers in countries like the US, the UK, France and Germany, global daily case numbers have doubled during this period. What is causing this rapid spread are mutations, of which over 50 have been discovered in the Omicron variant as compared to the older variants (including Delta). These have conferred the properties of increased transmissibility and a shorter incubation period which is now seen to be as low as three days. Closer home, cases in the major metro cities of Mumbai and New Delhi have suddenly increased by as much as 100 per cent in four to five days.
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