Last weekend marked three years since the UN health agency first referred to the situation as a pandemic; however, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus insists countries should have acted several weeks earlier.Michael Ryan, WHO’s director of emergencies, told a press conference, “I think we’re approaching the point where we can look at Covid-19 in the same way as seasonal influenza.”

“A health hazard, a contagion that will continue to cause death. But a virus that does not disrupt our society or hospital systems, and I believe that will arrive this year, as Tedros predicted.”The WHO director-general stated that the world is in a significantly stronger position than at any point during the pandemic.”I am confident that we will be able to declare the end of Covid-19 as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) this year,” he said.

On January 30, 2020, the WHO declared a PHEIC, its highest level of alert, when, outside of China, fewer than 100 cases and no fatalities had been reported.But it wasn’t until March 11 of that year, when Tedros described the deteriorating situation as a pandemic, that many countries appeared to recognise the peril.

“We declared a global health emergency to motivate countries to take decisive action, but not all did,” he said on Friday.”Three years later, nearly seven million deaths have been attributed to Covid-19, although we know the actual number is much higher.”

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He was delighted that for the first time in the past four weeks, the weekly number of reported deaths has been less than when he first described Covid-19 as a pandemic.However, he stated that more than 5,000 fatalities per week was excessive for a disease that can be prevented and treated.

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According to the government, approximately 79% of all influenza viruses isolated from patients with severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) or influenza-like illness are H3N2 (ILI). Influenza B Victoria (14%), a subtype of Influenza B, is the second most prevalent virus subtype, and Influenza A H1N1, also known as swine flu (7%), is the third most prevalent influenza virus subtype.

According to the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), states have reported 955 cases of H1N1 as of February 28. The preponderance of H1N1 cases, also known as swine flu, have been reported in Tamil Nadu (545), Maharashtra (170), Gujarat (170), Kerala (42) and Punjab, according to the Union Health Ministry (28).

According to IDSP-IHIP (integrated health information platform) data, the number of reported cases of acute respiratory illness/influenza (ARI/ILI)-like illness increased from 3.97 million in January to 4.36 million in February. An official was quoted by the Times of India as saying that 1.33 lakh ARI/ILI cases were reported in the first nine days of March.

The health ministry verified last week that two people had died from H3N2 infection, a subtype of influenza. A virus known to induce seasonal influenza.Moreover, Covid cases are increasing in many regions of the nation, including Delhi, which reported a Covid positivity rate of 3.24 percent, with 13 of 401 samples testing positive.

In a letter to states and territories, Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan stated that operational guidelines for integrated surveillance of respiratory pathogens presenting with influenza-like illness or severe acute respiratory infection must be adhered to.

Bhushan also requested an assessment of the hospital’s preparedness, including the availability of medications and medical oxygen, as well as vaccination coverage against Covid-19 and influenza. Bhushan wrote, “While the Covid-19 trajectory has decreased markedly over the past few months, the gradual increase in Covid-19 test positivity rates in some states is a cause for concern that requires immediate attention.”

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In the meantime, physicians advise people to wear masks due to the fact that swine flu, Influenza A subtype H3N2, and Covid-19 are transmitted primarily through virus droplets.

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