Kerala, the only major state which continues to report a high number of Covid-19 cases in India, is getting ready to open up schools, theaters and hotels in an effort to relegate pandemic lockdowns to the past. Maharashtra, the state that remained the largest breeding ground of SARS CoV2 throughout the first and second waves, got rid of most of its lockdown protocols when case numbers started declining. Other former hotspots, including Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Gujarat, have also lifted most of the restrictions, despite the threat of a third wave.
In short, India, where the delta variant of the Covid pandemic wreaked havoc for several months, is coming to terms with Covid-19 in a hurry. The reason for the hurry is the flagging economy, but it is also fueled by the belief that the virus is here to stay and likely to become endemic.
This means that the virus will continue to circulate in pockets across the globe for years to come and will join the list of many viral diseases, mainly flus, that have become endemic over the past decades.
Yet,the decline of cases has been far from smooth. This raises an important question — how long before Covid-19 can at least be curbed to the endemic stage, if not got rid of entirely?
Epidemiologists, medical experts and virologists are unanimous in their assessment that a total eradication of the virus now looks improbable, if not downright impossible, and a downgrade to endemic status seems far more achievable.
At the same time, no one is ready to predict how long it may take to downgrade Covid from the pandemic to the endemic stage in India.
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