Omicron virus: Can the COVID variant affect kids in India as observed in South Africa?

In South Africa, the new super mutant variant of Covid-19 - Omicron, has been increasing hospitalisations among children under five years of age.

New Delhi: While there is no data or evidence to show that children are not susceptible to Covid infection, Omicron may not cause a significant impact in children in India, experts argued on Monday. According to health officials in South Africa, the new super mutant variant of Covid-19 - Omicron, has been increasing hospitalisations among children under five years of age. Wassila Jassat, public health specialist at South Africa's National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), said: "A new trend in this wave is the increase in hospitalisation of children under five."

However, allaying fears of a similar scenario in India, microbiologist Dr Saumitra Das from the National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG), on Monday said that Omicron may not infect children in other countries, particularly in India, the way it is affecting kids in South Africa, media reports said.

Dr H.K. Mahajan, anaesthesiologist, Indian Spinal Injuries Centre, Vasant Kunj, told IANS: "As far as the Omicron variant of Covid-19 is concerned, there is no such hazard to children. As a country, we are prepared to meet the Omicron virus because we have adequate paediatric wards and paediatricians, as well as the necessary infrastructure."