China imposes curbs as COVID-19 rears its head again
COVID-19 is rearing its head again in China, from where the deadly disease is believed to have emerged. On Wednesday, the country reported 93 fresh COVID-19 cases, setting a new daily record in the latest outbreak. Infections have now spread to more than half of the Chinese provinces. Officials are resorting to strict measures to control the spread. Here are more details on this.
Why does it matter?
The fresh outbreak in China underlines experts' concerns that the pandemic is far from over. Further, it brings to the fore the highly transmissible nature of the Delta variant which is now the dominant coronavirus strain around the world. The virus' spread has once again raised questions about China's "zero-tolerance" policy toward COVID-19. Critics say the policy has taken an economic and psychological toll.
China records 600 cases in 15 days
Apart from the 93 cases confirmed on Wednesday, 11 other asymptomatic cases were reported by China's National Health Commission. However, China does not include asymptomatic cases in its official tally. National capital Beijing reported nine new local cases, the most since January 19. In the latest outbreak, China reported a total of 631 cases between October 17 and November 2.
Outbreak most widespread now
The outbreak is now mostly concentrated in northern China. It has affected 19 of 31 provinces, the most since the pandemic began in late 2019. Three more provinces recently detected local cases: Chongqing, Henan, and Jiangsu.
What is the Delta strain?
Experts and officials have blamed the highly-infectious Delta variant for the new outbreak in China. The strain, found in over 180 countries, is said to be the most infectious variant identified yet and partially evades immunity generated after prior infection or vaccination. It had driven India's devastating second wave of COVID-19 earlier this year and has since triggered outbreaks in several other countries.
China sticks to zero-tolerance policy
China remains committed to its "zero-tolerance policy," officials were quoted as saying by state media. Entrances of shopping malls, supermarkets, hotels, cinemas, and subway stations in Beijing now have temperature screening. Further, on-ground personnel will check visitors' health codes on their mobile phones. In fact, dozens of students were locked down in a primary school for hours after a staff member tested COVID-19 positive.
Policy not going anytime soon
"The policy (in China) will remain for a long time," Zhong Nanshan, China's top health expert, made clear. "Zero tolerance costs a lot indeed, but letting the virus spread costs more," he added.
Fears over winter and Olympic Games
There are also fears of a wider outbreak with the winter approaching. Moreover, the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics are now less than 100 days away, posing a major threat as thousands of international athletes and participants are set to arrive in the city. As of November 2, mainland China had reported 97,423 confirmed COVID-19 cases. The country has fully vaccinated over 100 crore people.
