'Omicron spreads 3 times faster, wrong to assume variant is mild': Dr Sandeep Nayar

While the country continues to witness a marginal rise in cases of Omicron variant of COVID-19, Dr Sandeep Nayar, Director of Chest and Respiratory department at BLK-Max hospital, has now said that the variant is spreading at an alarming speed. The health expert informed that the Omicron variant is spreading three times faster than the previous Delta variant of Coronavirus. Dr Nayar also informed that the assumption of Omicron being mild was wrong.

Speaking about the newly spreading Omicron variant of Coronavirus, Dr Sandeep Nayar said that the situation is ‘concerning’. “Omicron spreads three times faster than the Delta variant. There is a wrong assumption that Omicron is mild in nature,” he told ANI. The health expert further urged public to remain safe against the virus.

“Be careful, the positivity rate is increasing. This is concerning,” Dr Nayar said. He further stated that the people were failing to follow COVID appropriate behaviour resulting in the rise in fresh cases. “There is no social distancing among people. Strict measures should be taken,” Dr Nayar added. His comments came as the country witnessed a sharp rise in number of Omicron cases. Earlier on Thursday, December 30, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain asserted that the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is a fast-spreading variant of concern. However, he claimed that the variant was less effective than the previous variants.

Omicron tally in India crosses 1,000

India's tally of the Omicron variant of COVID crossed 1,000 on Thursday. With the addition of 309 fresh cases in the last 24 hours, the country’s total tally rose to 1,270. The rise in cases of the highly contagious virus variant came on the back of Maharashtra reporting its highest single-day infection with the new strain. Maharashtra reported 198 new cases of the Omicron variant, including 190 in Mumbai as reported by the state health department. Meanwhile, India also recorded what could be its first Omicron death on Thursday.

While the daily rise in COVID-19 cases crossed a 13,000 mark after 49 days, the country also recorded the highest single-day rise of Omicron infections. Meanwhile, India’s COVID-19 vaccination coverage also exceeded 144.54 crore. "With the administration of 66,65,290 vaccine doses in the last 24 hrs, India’s COVID-19 vaccination coverage exceeds 144.54 Crore. The recovery rate stands at 98.36%. Weekly positivity Rate at 0.89% remains less than 1% from last 47 days," Union Health Ministry reported.

Image: PTI/ Shutterstock