New Delhi: As the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic ravages the country and concerns being raised about a possible third wave, experts have cautioned that the next wave could be less severe if people keep following Covid-appropriate behaviour, provided a large portion of the population is vaccinated. The second wave has been much worse than the first one that hit in early 2020 and peaked in September that year.

Here’s what experts say:

  1. Many experts are of the opinion that a casual approach that followed the trough of the first wave could be a possible reason for the pandemic raising its head again.
  2. Others are putting the blame on the new mutants and variants of the virus being more virulent.
  3. According to experts, in a few months when the immunity people have developed naturally or with the help of vaccination fades, the virus strikes again and the only thing that can stop the virus from bouncing back is how people are guarding themselves.
  4. Amid the constant threat of new mutants of the virus, experts added mutations are a common phenomenon, and the mutations do not generally affect the prevention, treatment, or vaccination.
  5. “Any change, minor or major, that occurs in its structure is known as a mutation. A virus undergoes hundreds and thousands of such mutations,” said Dr Saumitra Das, Director, National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG ), Kalyani, and professor, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.
  6. Mutations shown so far in the novel coronavirus have not warranted any change in the required treatment or vaccines, but experts believe it is technologically possible to tweak the medicine or a vaccine quickly to fight a mutant that poses a threat to their efficacy.
  7. “But in the case of Covid-19, since its spread has been so rapid, it is not giving our scientists enough time to identify all the mutants. And so, the role of Covid-appropriate behaviour is as critical as ever in controlling its spread,” said Dr Arun Sharma, a community medicine expert and director of NIIRNCD (ICMR), Jodhpur.
  8. He said a virus mutant can escape the body’s immunity and undo the efforts to developing an effective vaccine or medicine against it, but chances of it escaping the shield called Covid-appropriate behaviour are low.
  9. A three-ply mask, frequent hand washing or sanitising, maintaining physical distance, avoiding crowd, especially indoors, are still most effective in controlling the spread of Covid-19 virus,” Dr Sharma added.
  10. He said any virus starts a chain of transmission by infecting the most vulnerable population and it keeps infecting till the time everyone susceptible is infected and then it starts dying out.
  11. “We treat the patients with antiviral drugs, and we protect the population through vaccination. These measures help us break the virus’s chain of transmission,” he added.

TAKEAWAY: The role of Covid-appropriate behaviour is as critical as ever in controlling its spread. A three-ply mask, frequent hand washing or sanitising, maintaining physical distance, avoiding crowd, especially indoors, are still the most effective in controlling the spread of Covid-19 virus.

K Vijay Raghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser, had said last week that the third wave was inevitable and it was necessary to be prepared for new waves, but clarified two days later that the “insidious asymptomatic transmission” can be stopped if prescribed guidelines about precautions, surveillance, containment, treatment and testing are followed.

According to the Union Health Ministry data released on Sunday morning, India recorded 4,03,738 fresh Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, pushing the country’s cumulative tally to 2,22,96,414, while the death toll climbed to 2,42,362 with 4,092 daily deaths.

(With agency inputs)