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News: New Government guidelines have allowed fully vaccinated passengers from 82 countries to skip the mandatory quarantine period. Also the requirement of compulsory on-arrival testing for passengers from certain countries identified as “at-risk” has also been removed.
Why is this relaxation being given?
There are sound epidemiological reasons for the decision. India’s daily trajectory of fresh COVID-19 cases is declining — from close to 3,00,000 cases a day on January 24, to around 58,000 cases a day now.
What are the reasons for this fall in numbers?
Change in testing attitudes: Now the Rapid antigen tests are easily available which can be self-administered. This leads to more cases being registered outside the system of Government-tracked RT-PCR testing and not reflecting in official case counts.
The omicron variant has turned out to be relatively milder compared to the Delta variant which meant that many of those infected did not need hospitalisation. This has prevented the healthcare system to become overwhelmed.
The availability of vaccines has also contributed to the third wave posing a diminished health threat.
How the pandemic has affected the aviation and tourism industry?
The tourism industry estimates that COVID-19 has caused losses of ₹150 lakh-crore since March 2020. The new relaxations appear to be in line to help the Industry recover as fast as possible.
What is the way forward?
The varied results internationally from booster doses and the conclusion that they were not enough to deter transmission have led to a broader acceptance that the coronavirus cannot be eliminated by vaccines alone. There is need for a comprehensive plan that has a mix of approaches such as wearing masks, vaccination and accepting short lockdowns.
The opening of schools and the normalising of air travel imply that the world must learn to prioritise equitable health care and improve hygiene.
Source: This post is based on the article “Clearing the airways” published in The Hindu on 12th Feb 2022.
