Guwahati, Jan 5: Amid the sudden surge in COVID-19 cases of late, the Assam government is not contemplating any lockdown as of now but will review the situation in the state on Thursday as positive cases continue to rise in the past three days.
The state reported 475 COVID-19 positive cases and three deaths on Tuesday with the overall positivity percentage shooting up to 1.29 percent. On Monday, 351 cases and two fatalities were reported as against 156 cases on Sunday.
Kamrup (Metro) too has seen a spike with 190 cases reported on Tuesday, 164 cases on Monday as against 78 cases the previous day.
“The emergence of the third wave is apparently on course as COVID-19 cases are rising alarmingly in the country and the state. However, we will review the COVID-19 situation after discussing with health authorities in the state tomorrow and take measures,” Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told mediapersons on Wednesday.
He hinted that an advisory would be issued in view of the rise in COVID-19 cases and emergence of the Omicron variant of the virus in the Northeast.
“But as of now, we do not see any need for a lockdown. Even during the second wave (when cases had spiked to 6000), no lockdown was imposed,” Sarma said.
The chief minister predicted that the state might see cases go up to 10,000 during the third wave but fatalities would be much lesser.
“The Omicron variant, despite spreading faster, might not result in too many fatalities.…However, children who are yet to be vaccinated, will be exposed…Our efforts will be towards keeping people safe from the virus while ensuring that livelihoods and economy of the state is not affected during containment,” Sarma said.
There is concern after the detection of the Omicron variant in the sample of a 13-year-old tourist from Assam in Meghalaya.
Reportedly, authorities are trying to track and isolate the person who, according to a media report, might be in the Digaru area of Sonapur.
On Tuesday, education minister Ranoj Pegu had said that with the vaccination drive launched in the 15-18 years age category, as of now, no decision has been taken regarding the closure of schools amid the COVID surge.
Meanwhile, over 50 COVID positive cases have been reported in IIT-Guwahati over the last six days, with authorities imposing restrictions on the campus.
Reportedly, almost all the infections were detected among those who returned to the campus from outside Assam after the holidays.