‘Rising Covid, deaths not cause of concern, virus has become endemic’

The current increase seen in both Covid infections and deaths due to there is no cause of concern, experts said here on Tuesday, contending that we have reached Covid endemicity. India on Tuesday recorded 7,633 fresh Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, taking the number of active infections to 61,233, according to Union Health Ministry data. In the last week, the country reported close to 10,000 cases a day, against just 100 cases a day six weeks back. The country saw a 79 per cent increase in the number of cases week on week. Talking to IANS, infectious disease expert Dr. Ishwar Gilada said that with waning immunity, we can keep getting more Covid cases. “Given the way, the cases are getting multiplied now, by the end of May, the numbers can go up to one lakh a day, (but) even then I wouldn’t call it a wave. “We need to do a lot of surveillance and that is to deduct the periodic ups and lows which is part of the endemicity in which we are already in. As there are no new variants in the last 16 months, we need not worry that there will be a major wave. We should keep our fingers crossed. I don’t think there’ll be a fourth wave,” he said. “Covid-19 seems to have become endemic and like the flu, we may see highs and lows in the near future,” added Dr Anita Mathew, Infectious Disease Specialist, Fortis Hospital, Mulund.