Omicron Scare In Odisha With Rising R-Value; Wear Mask, Follow COVID Protocol: CM

Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday stressed the need to stay alert with the Omicron variant of COVID-19 spreading very fast. “Wear masks, do not step out of homes if there’s no emergency. We can and we will fight this wave with everyone’s cooperation,” he said.

While the variant has infected over 200 in India, Odisha has so far seen two Omicron cases. The patients aged 41 and 43, belong to Jagatsingpur and Khurda districts.

According to epidemiologist Dr Giridhar Babu, Odisha has seen its R-value rise from 0.8 to 0.94 in the week ending December 19. An R-value of 1 means one COVID-infected person can spread the infection to another person. Interestingly, R-value in the state had climbed to 1.04 during the week from November 23-29 but came down subsequently.

Director, Health Services, Bijay Mohapatra said that this situation shouldn’t be taken lightly. “Surveillance, tracking and testing are underway. Community plays a vital role in reducing transmission. The Centre has directed all states and Union Territories to impose restrictions if the Test Positivity Rate (TPR) crosses 10% or occupancy of oxygen-supported ICU beds touches 40%,” he added.

Odisha reported 183 new COVID cases in the last 24 hours and a TPR of 0.32%.

A high-level meeting under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary SC Mohapatra is scheduled to be held this evening to finalise strategies to deal with the new variant.

Notably, two areas in Bhubaneswar have been declared as micro-containment zones after two UK returnees at Bomikhal and a few people in VSS Nagar tested positive for the virus in the last 48 hours.