Haunted by the spectre of last year’s crisis, India is bracing for a deluge of Covid-19 cases, with authorities of various megacities bringing in restrictions in a bid to keep infections in check. But daily infections nearly tripled over two days this week to more than 90,000, a surge driven by the highly contagious Omicron variant that some experts worry could again see the country’s hospitals overwhelmed. Tech hub Bangalore has also declared a weekend curfew, while sprawling financial centre Mumbai introduced a night curfew. Preliminary studies have so far suggested the Omicron variant has led to less severe health consequences among those infected, despite its rapid spread. “I am afraid there may be a period in India when we see the same thing — just the sheer volume may make the system crumble.”

Source: The Guardian January 07, 2022 14:19 UTC