IN what has happened for the first time since the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic, Jammu and Kashmir has reported no fresh COVID-19 cases and no death due to the virus in the last 24 hours. There are now just 23 active Covid cases in the union territory. So far 4785 people have succumbed to the virus and among them, 2352 are from the Jammu division and 2433 from the Valley. On an all-India level too, just 1,334 fresh coronavirus infections have been recorded, the lowest in 188 days. The number of active cases has declined to 23,193.
However, this is no reason to let our guard down. The virus is now a part of lives and it has already become endemic. Besides, the new variants of the virus keep triggering fresh outbreaks. For example, India has recently witnessed the emergence of a new Omicron sub-variant XBB, which is expected to be the dominant strain of the COVID-19 virus in India within a month. According to data, there were 71 confirmed cases of XBB-driven COVID-19 infection in India in the beginning of this month, and the number jumped to 235 on October 24.
But the overall trend remains one of a steep decline in the cases. Though there is some cause for optimism here, things could still turn messy if the existing pandemic-related precautions are thrown to the winds. The Omicron wave early this year was gigantic in nature but its fallout was cushioned by the relatively moderate nature of the virus. But the continuously mutating sub-variants of the Omicron virus could in time trigger yet another wave. So people have to continue to take care. It is too soon to abandon the masks or give up the use of sanitizers. The Standard Operating Procedures remain as relevant as they did when the pandemic broke out in early 2020. Meanwhile, we can celebrate our triumph on the Covid pandemic with the least number of Covid cases and fatalities to date.
In Kashmir, there is a greater need for precaution in winter, generally the season of flu. Though zero cases and zero fatalities in the last 24 hours is a heartening development, the situation can stay this way if people don’t give up SOPs. Meanwhile, the drastic reduction in Covid cases is a cause for celebration. It is also a boon for tourism which has witnessed a bumper year so far with over one crore people visiting the union territory. We can’t afford to let this momentum slow down.
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