The Omicron factor

There appears to be no escape for the world from the Covid-19 virus which has so badly affected life across the globe over the past two and a half years. Just as Pakistan and other countries had hoped the pandemic was more or less over, according to reports, 12 cases of the Omicron variant have been discovered in Balochistan. Confirmation is awaited. There is still some argument amongst medical experts as to whether this variant is any less dangerous than the Delta variant, which till now had been the dominant strain in most countries. From Delta, Omicron is already taking over in Europe, parts of the US, the UK and other nations. Pakistan then has reasons to be on alert, with the second patient discovered with the Omicron, who had travelled in from the UK and been detained at a hotel on Shahrah-e-Faisal in Karachi, managing to escape the facility. There is obviously a need to improve security at quarantine centres, something which has still not happened despite the steady cases of escape since last year.

With Omicron now in the country, the NCOC has announced that booster doses of an mRNA vaccine will be permitted to all those over 30 on request. For this purpose, a large consignment of Moderna vaccines has reached the country and the rollout will begin from January 1; there are reports that we will also be getting more doses of the Pfizer vaccine. We can only hope that this will help check the spread of the variant and protect people from a new variant, the symptoms of which closely resemble that of an ordinary cold and are significantly different from previous variants of the disease.

It is also worth noting that in Pakistan the SOPs necessary to prevent the spread of Covid-19 have more or less been abandoned. This has to change. Omicron has the potential of spreading with enormous speed and possibly proving as severe as other variants. It is vital that people be kept in the alert, that the second dose for all who have not yet received it be ensured and people encouraged to take up the booster dose that is now being offered so that as many as possible can be prevented and we can avoid a situation which leads us towards disaster and danger for all citizens across the country in a time when education, business, retail, hospitality, and other industries have already been badly stricken.