Covid is growing milder with time but an occasional surge in cases is expected because the virus that causes it is now endemic and constantly evolving, say scientists while assuring that there is no cause for concern.
Senior virologist Shahid Jameel on Sunday resigned as the chairman of scientific advisory group of Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium, a forum set up by union government in December last year for laboratory and epidemiological surveillance of circulating strains of COVID-19 in India.
As concerns mounted and some people wondered whether this could possibly turn out to be another Covid, pulmonologist Anurag Agrawal said he doesn't expect to see a massive wave.
The transmission of dengue is closely associated with three key factors -- rainfall, humidity and temperature -- that dictate the geographies in which it spreads and the transmission rate of the viral infection caused by the dengue virus (DENV), and transmitted to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes.
There is so far no evidence that the second wave of COVID-19 in the country is due to variants of the virus, but it is possible, said noted virologist Shahid Jameel.
Eminent virologist Shahid Jameel COVID-19 cases in the second wave also won't come down in as steady a fashion as they did after the first wave.
India has purchased 500 million doses of the Oxford University-AstraZeneca vaccine candidate, one billion from the United States company Novavax and 100 million doses of the Sputnik V candidate from Russia's Gamaleya Research Institute, according to the US-based Duke University Global Health Innovation Center.
While there is a glimmer of hope and India's COVID-19 numbers are on a definite decline for a combination of reasons, a vaccination programme continues to be important, particularly given the presence of a mutant, more transmissible strain, several experts said while cautioning against infection upticks ahead.
'The worst is possibly over because too many of us may already be infected.'
Experts believe that under-reporting is likely to cause an underestimation of the spread of the disease.
'Even after vaccines are given, precautions like using a mask and maintaining social distancing have to be taken.'
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