homehealthcare NewsCOVID 19 has become an endemic, new variants emerging over time not unusual: Kiran Mazumdar Shaw
COVID-19 has become an endemic, new variants emerging over time not unusual: Kiran Mazumdar Shaw
Speaking to CNBC-TV18 Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Executive Chairperson of Biocon talked about new variant of COVID and importance of vaccination. She said this is an alert, but not an alarm.
The Omicron variant of COVID-19, which has contributed to a fourfold rise in new cases in South Africa over just the past 2 weeks, has been declared a variant of concern by the World Health Organisation.
As per the genomics surveillance authority in South Africa, the new variant has an unusually high number of mutations. Mutations include those contributing to higher transmissibility, immunity evasion and increased infectivity. The new strain is, however, easily identifiable and can be detected by regular RT-PCR tests. No additional, unique symptoms have been recorded yet, and some patients are asymptomatic.
Read More: COVID vaccination need of the hour; precautionary measures should continue: Dr Samiran Panda
Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Executive Chairperson of Biocon said, “We should expect newer and new variants to emerge over time. Because I think COVID-19 has become an endemic, and these variants are nothing unusual in these kinds of viruses. So to get panicky over a new viral strain is not the right way to approach this problem.”
She added, “Omicron is a new virus. It is a new variant with a number of mutations. But we really don't know whether is it far more virulent? Of course, we know it is far more infectious and transmittable, but is it as lethal as the Delta virus? We don't know. The data so far suggests that it is in fact milder than the data variable. So it looks like as if the virus is mutating into a milder and milder form, or better still, that vaccination has also helped to mute it. So I don't think we should panic at this stage. It is an alert, but not an alarm is my view.”
“I think we should not panic over suddenly coming out with these drastic travel curbs and things like that, because it is just setting fear amongst people. Moreover, you want people to get vaccinated. So, if you are going to start creating a fear factor saying whether you are vaccinated or not, it is not going to protect you I think that is the wrong kind of message to send to the world," she said.
She added that all governments around the world should stop this panic.
She said, “We don't have enough data and I believe that these variants with the vaccines are easily manageable.”
For full interview, watch accompanying video...
(Edited by : Anshul)
First Published: Nov 29, 2021 3:59 PM IST
Check out our in-depth Market Coverage, Business News & get real-time Stock Market Updates on CNBC-TV18. Also, Watch our channels CNBC-TV18, CNBC Awaaz and CNBC Bajar Live on-the-go!
