Hyderabad: With Covid-19 set to enter its ninth month in India after the country reported its first confirmed case in Kerala on January 30, there is a likelihood of increased transmission of the novel COVID-19 during the winter months, health experts warned on Wednesday.
The novel COVID-19 is traversing in winter and is going to create havoc in India claims the experts.
Dr Richa Sareen Consultant, Pulmonology at Fortis Hospital in New Delhi said that based on the other respiratory viruses, it may be possible that the coronavirus infections also might rise in the coming winter months.
Respiratory virus shows seasonal variation
According to the medical experts most of the respiratory illnesses like SARS, influenza, etc show a seasonal variation, with cases spiking in winter months. Viruses tend to survive longer in a cold and dry climate.
Furthermore, low humidity promotes evaporation of viral particles and aerosol formations, which can increase the airborne spread of disease.
It is reported that lack of sunshine in winters also depletes Vitamin D levels, thereby decreasing immunity, making us more susceptible to infections, including COVID-19.
The effect of winters on COVID-19 surge is yet to be seen, however wearing a proper mask, following hand hygiene and social distancing are the mainstay to prevent Covid-19 infection till the vaccine arrives.
On Tuesday, the key findings of the second round of sero-survey conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) suggested that India had 87 million COVID-19 patients by the end of August.
ICMR Director-General Balram Bhargava had said that one in 15 individuals was exposed to COVID-19 by August.
COVID-19 spike is because of People’s recklessness
However, the rise in the cases will be accelerated mainly because people are becoming less vigilant, mask use is down and mobility is up.
In view of the alarming situation, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has called a special review meeting with officials of the Delhi government to discuss the issue on Monday. After July, this is the second time that the Centre has intervened. In the last meeting, Home Minister Amit shah had discussed the issue with Chief Minister Arvind Kejiriwal, State health Minister Satyendra Jain and other officials after which testing and tracing were ramped up.
“It’s combined effect of the festive season, decrease in temperature and increased pollution. The experts had also suggested that at this time COVID-19 cases could rise.” said Delhi health minister Satyendra Jain. This is the fifth day when Delhi has reported a spike in COVID-19 cases.