Omicron Scare: 'Not vaccinating children could backfire,' says top doctor

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Amid the threat of the Omicron variant of Covid-19, Delhi's Gangaram Hospital Dr. Dhiren on Thursday said that India has “delayed vaccination for children” and that could “backfire”. Two cases of the new Omicron variant of coronavirus have been detected in Karnataka, said Union Health Ministry.

As Omicron fear continued to grip India, Dr. Dhiren of the Gangaram Hospital said that the next 2 weeks are going to be critical. 

“The detection of Omicron virus in India was expected. People in India need to be calm and composed, but at the same time should be vigilant. With our initial reports, we can say that it is a milder virus as compared to the other variants. Asymptomatic cases spread faster due to the lack of awareness in people. Vaccination will benefit all of us. The next 2 weeks are going to be critical. Consider this period as a personal lockdown. Younger people have been affected in South Africa by the Omicron variant,” Dr. Dhiren of Delhi's Gangaram Hospital said. 

He added that India has “delayed vaccination for children” and that could “backfire”.

"Children not getting vaccinated can probably be the weak link in fighting from Covid19. We have delayed our vaccination for children. Our policies debarring them from vaccination can backfire on us. We need to think before sending them to school," Dr. Dhiren, Gangaram Hospital said.

On detection of Omicron variant cases, Dr. Dhiren said that "people need to be calm and composed."

"Detection of Omicron virus in India was expected. People in India need to be calm and composed but at the same time we should be vigilant. With our initial reports, we can say that it is a milder virus as compared to the other variants," Dr. Dhiren added.

Out of two cases of the new Omicron variant of coronavirus that have been detected in the city, one is a South African national who has left the country after testing negative, while the other is a local with no travel history.

The city civic body said five contacts of the local person have also tested positive and their samples have been sent for genomic sequencing. According to officials, both the persons who have tested positive for Omicron were vaccinated with two doses of COVID vaccine.

The new COVID-19 variant was first reported to the World Health Organisation (WHO) from South Africa on November 25. As per the WHO, the first known confirmed B.1.1.529 infection was from a specimen collected on November 9 this year.

On November 26, the WHO named the new COVID-19 variant B.1.1.529, which has been detected in South Africa, as 'Omicron'. The WHO has classified Omicron as a 'variant of concern'.

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