We have unfortunately witnessed a flare-up or a virtual explosion of Corona virus infections in Jammu and Kashmir breaking the records of the last two waves in respect of the highest number of infections in a day with over 5818 new cases reported. Kashmir region which has been consistently showing the upward trend has recorded 4066 new cases while Jammu has recorded over 1752 new infections. Four persons succumbed to the virus in Jammu of whom two were fully vaccinated while one was partially vaccinated. The trend and the manner of spike in infections is both distressing and causing concern while at the same time, needing sustained and effective measures to bring it well under control to defang it as soon as possible. Since more facilities for testing the new variant of the virus are not available in the UT , how many out of the freshly infected cases pertain to Omicron variant, cannot be precisely known. However, as the virus in is new variant and termed as ”variant of concern” due to its characteristics of spreading like the proverbial wild fire, the explosion in number of cases could be linked to the possibilities of the new variant creating havoc .
Our medical staff – the Corona warriors ,on comparative basis of the two waves and on setting of the current or the third wave, have got infected more in number this time, perhaps the highest, thus affecting the normal working of the premier Government Hospital in Jammu, the GMC Hospital where Doctors from the Ayurved system of medicine had to be requisitioned plus nursing staff undergoing training as also the final year students of the MBBS courses to attend to emergencies. We have also seen that a curve like trend both rising , peaking and nose diving of the infections, operated in both the two waves especially the point when the infections peaked and therefore is to behave in the current wave too. Only thereafter , the behaviour of the curve is going down and losing its intensity. While the stage of peak has almost reached as witnessed in most parts of the country where infections started spreading earlier than in the UT and the experts who predicted the peak to be by the end of January but in terms of what was projected about the speed of spread, in actual terms, it is spreading faster. In other words, the virus has proved to be keeping ”much to its chest” and letting very little know about its trend and behaviour. That precisely is, in common parlance, much to be worried about as to how many more waves and how much more fierce to be faced by us in addition to how long their duration could be.
Another disturbing factor is the level of full effectiveness of the vaccination against the virus as the ones invented and made to fight it tend to be less effective in the subsequent wave so on and so forth. Have scientists , therefore, globally to keep researching and doing works on it on ”wave wise” basis or invent such an antidote which takes care of it for all mutants the virus may keep sprouting in to trouble rather devastate lives and economies. That critical part of the war, however, is to be taken care of by the medical scientists but one thing , now by experience, has proved to be not only foolproof but perhaps the only way to keep the virus away and that is ”remaining” away from it. That is only in our hands . We can do all our daily routine by keeping a reasonable physical distance and wear effective masks ( not only substandard and non effective just to evade a fine ) while not forgetting to wash our hands frequently. That also means no gathering or very thin ones with proper distancing both in joy and in grief – meaning in events like marriage ceremonies, social and religious functions etc as also while participating in occasions of funerals and condolences and any such occasions where assembly of people is not a mere possibility but a certainty.
Let us hope the worst of the third wave is over in Jammu and Kashmir and perhaps it has peaked now only to expect the trajectory to be absolutely flat to start a rapid fall in infections paving the way for the current wave to get fully subdued and dead. However, we have now to learn to virtually ”live with” the Corona virus which means it is not going to vanish in the very near future for all times to come denoting only that we have to adjust ourselves to ”live ” with it quite safe and normal. The key to safety, in simple common parlance, is the popular phrase ”Saavdhani hatti – Durgatna gatti”
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