Omicron, the new Covid variant having the high mutation capability, may turn deadly if it enters Bangladesh although it now seems to be less lethal in many countries, warn experts. As the highly transmissible new variant is spreading fast in different countries, including India, they said emergency preparedness should be in place as Omicron may make its way into Bangladesh any time. Prof Nazrul Islam, ex VC of BSMMU, Dr AM, Zakir Hossain, former director of IEDCR, Prof Dr Bijon Kumar Sil, head of Gono Bishwabidyalay’s Microbiology department and Prof Dr MH Chowdhury (Lenin), head of Health and Hope Hospital’s Medicine department, made the observations while talking to UNB. The analysts said the government should take proper steps to strictly implement its 15-point guideline and intensify monitoring and screening of the incoming passengers through air and land ports and ensure their quarantine. They also said the enforcement of the law is also now necessary to force people to maintain health protocols and wear masks since most people are now reluctant about following the health safety rules due to the current very low Covid infection rate. It’s just matter of time Dr Lenin said Omicron has already spread to 52 countries in the world, including India, Sri Lanka and Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, the USA and the UK. “As Bangladesh has strong communications and connectivity with these countries, we fear this virus may enter Bangladesh at any time.” At the same time, he said, a good number of people returned to Bangladesh from African countries and the Omicron-affected nations over the last three weeks. Also read: How can I protect myself from the new omicron variant?

South African scientists identified a new version of the coronavirus that they say is behind a recent spike in COVID-19 infections in Gauteng, the country's most populous province. It's unclear where the new variant first emerged, but scientists in South Africa alerted the World Health Organization in recent days, and it has now been seen in travelers arriving in several countries, from Australia to Israel to the Netherlands. On Friday, the WHO designated it as a "variant of concern," naming it "omicron" after a letter in the Greek alphabet. WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT OMICRON? Health Minister Joe Phaahla said the variant was linked to an "exponential rise" of cases in the last few days. From just over 200 new confirmed cases per day in recent weeks, South Africa saw the number of new daily cases rocket to more than 3,200 Saturday, most in Gauteng. Struggling to explain the sudden rise in cases, scientists studied virus samples and discovered the new variant. Now, as many as 90% of the new cases in Gauteng are caused by it, according to  Tulio de Oliveira, director of the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform. WHY ARE SCIENTISTS WORRIED ABOUT THIS NEW VARIANT? After convening a group of experts to assess the data, the WHO said that "preliminary evidence suggests an increased risk of reinfection with this variant," as compared to other variants. That means people who contracted COVID-19 and recovered could be subject to catching it again. The variant appears to have a high number of mutations — about 30 — in the coronavirus' spike protein, which could affect how easily it spreads to people. Sharon Peacock, who has led genetic sequencing of COVID-19 in Britain at the University of Cambridge, said the data so far suggest the new variant has mutations "consistent with enhanced transmissibility," but said that "the significance of many of the mutations is still not known." Lawrence Young, a virologist at the University of Warwick, described omicron as "the most heavily mutated version of the virus we have seen," including potentially worrying changes never before seen all in the same virus. READ: What is this new COVID variant in South Africa? WHAT'S KNOWN AND NOT KNOWN ABOUT THE VARIANT? Scientists know that omicron is genetically distinct from previous variants including the beta and delta variants, but do not know if these genetic changes make it any more transmissible or dangerous. So far, there is no indication the variant causes more severe disease. It will likely take weeks to sort out if omicron is more infectious and if vaccines are still effective against it. Peter Openshaw, a professor of experimental medicine at Imperial College London said it was "extremely unlikely" that current vaccines wouldn't work, noting they are effective against numerous other variants.

As the highly contagious Delta variant of Covid-19 has made its way into Dhaka and other districts from frontier ones, experts fear an impending health catastrophe in the coming weeks since there is no strict measure in place to stop it. They said half-hearted preventive measures, lack of seriousness of local administrations, reopening of intra-district transport services and people’s apathy to maintain health safety guidelines are the major reasons behind the worsening Covid situation in the country. The Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control and Research has recently found 80 percent of a randomly selected sample of 50 Covid patients infected with the Delta variant. It also said the deadly variant has spread to parts of central Bangladesh, including the capital, while seven workers of Ashrayan Project in Nawabganj upazila of Dhaka have been detected with the same virus strain. The sudden spike in virus cases has put a severe strain on four major hospitals ---Rajshahi Medical College, Khulna Medical College, Chapainawabganj and Kushtia General Hospital--with increasing patients from 11 nearby districts. Also read: IEDCR study of 50 samples finds 40 are Delta Experts said the government should immediately increase the number of beds, doctors and nurses and treatment facilities, in these hospitals to cope with the pressure of Covid patients. The virus infection has been showing an upward trend in Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj, Dinajpur, Joypurhat, Naogaon, Kushtia, Jashore, Satkhira, Khulna, Bagerhat, Natore, Noakhali and Cox's Bazar districts for several days.

As the Indian variant of Covid-19 spreads rapidly in the neighbouring country and beyond, so is panic and fear among people in Bangladesh.   For instance, local residents as well as scores of workers at Sonahat Land Port in Kurigram are living in the face of fear, with hundreds of Indian truckers entering Bangladesh through the border daily.   The locals and port workers fear a potential transmission of the highly contagious Covid variant as these truckers hardly adhere to health safety norms -- neither they wear masks nor maintain social distancing.   A reality check by UNB on Tuesday revealed that hundreds of goods-laden trucks from India were waiting on the Bangladesh side of the land port in Bhurungamari upazila for getting their documents verified.   Also read: 8 Indian variant cases identified in Jashore