The new Covid-19 variant Omicron is making its move across the globe and it has been designated as a Variant of Concern (VOC) by the World Health Organization. The variant was first detected in South Africa on November 24 and it has emerged to be a global risk within a week. It has infected over 380 people in 30 countries so far including India, with two Omicron cases that were detected on Thursday in Karnataka. 

The Indian government had tightened the restrictions for international travellers, particularly those who arrive from the countries at risk. It has also been ramping up measures domestically to tackle the soaring Covid-19 spread. The Union Health Ministry has identified 18 districts across the country that were at risk with more cases and alarmed these countries to take precautionary measures to curb the surge. Lav Agarwal, the Joint Secretary of the Health Ministry, has on Thursday said that these 18 districts report an increase in cases at around 5 to 10 per cent per week.

These 18 districts are nine from Kerala and one each from Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Manipur, Puducherry, Sikkim, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal. Agarwal said that these districts are in a worrying state and Kerala has been reporting a surge in active cases. Kerala has reported over 10,000 active cases and has a larger contribution to the country's total Covid-19 tally. While the country is recovering back after battling the Delta variant, the emergence of the Omicron variant had put a halt to the normalcy of the international airspace. 

On Thursday, India has reported two cases of the Omicron variant. The two Covid-19 cases of the Omicron variant have been detected in Karnataka and they have been isolated. With the reporting, India has become the 30th country in the world to record the Omicron cases. Addressing a news briefing concerning the development, Union Health Ministry's Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal has said that two patients are men aged 66 and 46. He had denied disclosing their identity to protect their privacy. 

However, the reports say that the 66-year-old is a foreigner with a history of travel to South Africa and the 46-year-old man is a health worker in Bengaluru. Agarwal said that all people who came in contact with the two men have been traced and are being tested and affirmed that both the cases are mild and there are no severe symptoms so far. He said, "We need not panic about Omicron detection but awareness is absolutely essential. Follow Covid appropriate behaviour and avoid gatherings." 

He further said, "It is too early to assess whether Omicron causes more severe infection or less compared to other variants, including Delta." ICMR Director-General Dr Balram Bhargava said, "Two cases of Omicron have been detected in Karnataka through genome sequencing effort of INSACOG consortium of 37 laboratories established by the Ministry of Health. We need not panic, but awareness is absolutely essential." 

Agarwal stated, "All Omicron related cases are found to have mild symptoms so far. In all such cases in the country and across the world so far, no severe symptom has been noted", adding that a surge in the Covid-19 cases is being noted across the world with Europe alone reporting 70 per cent of cases in the last one week. "In the week ending November 28, around 2.75 lakh new cases and over 31,000 deaths were reported in the European region", he highlighted.