Japan government lifts COVID state of emergency amid decline in infections

Japan's COVID-19 state of emergency was lifted by the government on October 1. After a year and a half, Japan appears to have turned a corner on its return to normalcy. Soon, the country would be free of any constraints on social and economic activities. However, it is unclear how the government will take its actions on a national scale, such as requiring vaccine certificates to check people's immunisation status at large event venues. It was the first time since April that none of the country's 47 regions had been subjected to anti-infection measures.

The government formally decided on September 28 to lift the state of emergency that had been in place for Tokyo and 18 other prefectures, citing a substantial decrease in infections as the reason for the relaxation of restrictions. On September 28, Japan has also begun to reduce quarantine regulations for travellers from abroad who have been completely vaccinated, decreasing the required duration of self-isolation after arrival from 14 days to 10.

Japan is eager to enhance social and economic activities while balancing the need to avoid another wave of diseases. Officials said more time is needed to build more temporary COVID-19 treatment facilities and continue vaccination if the virus resurfaces, AP reported.

State of emergency ends, trains get packed with commuters

As the country begins to reduce virus-prevention measures to enable the pandemic-ravaged economy to recover, a swarm of mask-wearing commuters rushed to work at Tokyo's popular Shinagawa railway station, with some returning to their workplaces after months of remote work, AP reported. The emergency measures, which had been in place for more than half of the country, including Tokyo, were lifted on September 30 due to a continuous drop in new caseloads in recent weeks, easing pressure on Japanese healthcare systems.

India COVID update

In the last 24 hours, India reported 26,727 new COVID-19 cases, a 13% rise from the previous day's total of 23,529 cases. During the previous 24 hours, at least 277 people have died due to the coronavirus, bringing the total number of deaths to 4,48,339. In India, the overall number of coronavirus cases has risen to 3,37,66,707. On the other hand, active cases account for 0.82% of all infections, the lowest level since March 2020; the active caseload is now 2,751,224, the lowest level in 196 days.

(With inputs from AP)

Image: AP