Covid cases up: It's still endemic, say virologists

BENGALURU: With India's active Covid caseload rising by the day over the last week or so, the big question is: Is it just a matter of time before another 'wave' hits the country and rekindles memories of those dreadful summers of 2020 and 2021?
On Saturday, the nation's active caseload stood at 31,194, with 6,155 fresh cases recorded on the day. Karnataka logged 321 new Covid cases on Saturday, though no deaths were reported on the day.
Asked whether India is on the brink of another wave, Dr T Jacob John, eminent virologist and retired professor and head of the departments of clinical virology and microbiology at CMC Vellore, told STOI: "When the number crosses the threshold of 6,500 cases per day and keeps rising, then we must admit that the infection is causing a new wave.If the number rises above and falls below the threshold, within days, it will still be endemic for Covid-19."
He further said: "When we say the disease and its infection are 'endemic', the upper limit of 'endemic prevalence' is 6,500 cases per day."
Microbiologist and researcher Dr Gagandeep Kang also feels that Covid is in endemic phase in India right now. "We have been endemic in the sense of having continuous virus circulation in our population since the Delta wave," Dr Kang said.
Elaborating, she said: "The slow and relatively small rise in cases is the effect of a new sublineage that escapes prior infection and vaccine-derived immunity. This is as expected for an RNA virus capable of rapid evolution."
Dr Kang, who is also a professor at CMC Vellore, added: "Cases have risen, but hospitalizations and deaths are still low. This [rising cases] will subside in a few weeks."