Covid-19: 1 in 3 Indians think 4th wave has already begun
PremiumA majority, 55% of citizens out of 12,609, is ‘highly confident’ that India will be able to effectively handle things in the event of a fourth wave
As several states show signs of Covid-19 surging, at least one in three Indians is of the opinion that the fourth wave of infection has already begun.
According to a survey conducted by LocalCircles, out of 11,563 people, 29% of citizens said the fourth wave is “not likely in 2022" and 4% said it will not strike "for six months at least".
Further, 13% of people said it will start in May-June; and 7% think in July-August", and 4% September-October.
“On an aggregate basis, one in three Indians believe that the fourth Covid wave in India has already started," according to the survey results.
In addition to this, given that Omicron did not lead to a severe situation due to the preparedness of the central and state governments after the second wave, the majority, 55% of citizens out of 12,609, is “highly confident" that India will be able to effectively handle things in the event of a fourth wave.
A total of 29% said they are "somewhat confident" of the government being able to handle any possible surge, 4% said they have “very little confidence" and 8% of citizens are not confident at all.
“This is largely basis the experience of third Covid wave. However, if the virus turns out to be more severe, it has the potential to test the country’s weak healthcare infrastructure, like the Delta variant," said the survey results.
Also, many states and districts have stopped reporting daily Covid cases to post February this year due to a decline in infections. Since a surge is being witnessed again, a majority 83% out of 12,064 citizens want the Union health ministry to make it mandatory for states and districts to publish this data daily.
The survey suggests that on the basis of inputs from scientists, epidemiologists, virologists and paediatricians, data from the risk of re-infection by transmissible nature of Covid variants and sub-variants and survey findings, a conservative approach is warranted in regard to masking, social distancing and other restrictions.