Early days of viral surge: 1 in 3 households in Karnataka have someone down with viral/Covid like symptoms; 1 in 5 in Delhi NCR and 1 in 6 in Maharashtra

August 10, 2023, New Delhi: New COVID variant Eris, a descendant of Omicron, which has spread in UK, is the latest virus that is causing some concerns among people in India who have been down with runny nose, headache, fatigue, sneezing and sore throat. The news of Eris, coming after hardly a few months of reprieve from COVID variants and other viral fevers that had gripped India till the early part of this year, is worrying many who have recently had or are having viral or COVID like symptoms. The symptoms of Eris are reported as sore throat, runny nose, blocked nose, sneezing, dry cough, headache, wet cough, hoarse voice, muscle aches, fever and altered smell.

Pediatricians in Bengaluru are reported to be concerned about the spurt in viral fever and respiratory tract infections which is affecting one in ten school-going children over the last three weeks. In fact, in many cases the patient is having to be admitted to the hospital for treatment while others are having to stay at home with fever, cough, runny nose, body aches, loss of appetite and conjunctivitis. In Delhi NCR, viral fever and dengue are the most common illnesses being reported along with typhoid and some cases of leptospirosis (rat fever), which spreads because rats come out of their burrows due to waterlogging. In Maharashtra too in cities like Mumbai and Pune scores of citizens have been reporting being under the weather in the last few weeks. Given the rise in the sheer number of posts received from people in Delhi NCR, Maharashtra and Karnataka about being unwell, LocalCircles conducted a survey to find out the magnitude of the viral/Covid type illnesses in the three states. The survey received over 19,000 responses from residents of Delhi NCR, Maharashtra and Karnataka. 63% of the respondents were men while 37% were women.

16% of households surveyed in Maharashtra now have one or more individuals with viral/Covid like symptoms

The survey asked residents of Maharashtra, “How many individuals do you have in your household who currently have one or more COVID/ flu/ viral fever symptoms like fever, runny nose, sore throat, cough, headache, joint pain, body ache, respiratory issues, etc.?” This query received 7,652 responses with 12% indicating that one individual in their household was unwell with COVID/Viral symptoms while 4% indicated that 2-3 individuals in their household were unwell. The remaining 84% of respondents indicated that “no one, thankfully” was unwell in their household. In sum, 16% of households surveyed in Maharashtra now have one or more individuals with COVID/ viral symptoms.

21% of households surveyed in Delhi NCR currently have one or more individuals with viral/Covid like symptoms

The survey then sought to understand the situation from residents of Delhi NCR. It asked, “How many individuals do you have in your household who currently have one or more COVID/ flu/ viral fever symptoms like fever, runny nose, sore throat, cough, headache, joint pain, body ache, respiratory issues, etc.?” Out of 7,888 households in Delhi NCR who responded to this query 14% indicated that 2-3 members in their household were unwell and 7% indicated one person was unwell. However, 79% of respondents were thankful that as yet “no one” was unwell in their household. In sum, 21% of households surveyed in Delhi NCR currently have one or more individuals with viral/Covid like symptoms.

33% of households surveyed in Karnataka currently have one or more individuals unwell with viral/Covid like symptoms

The survey then asked the same question to residents of Karnataka. It asked, “How many individuals do you have in your household who currently have one or more COVID/ flu/ viral fever symptoms like fever, runny nose, sore throat, cough, headache, joint pain, body ache, respiratory issues, etc.?” This query received 3,519 responses from Karnataka residents with 11% indicating that 4 or more individuals in their household were unwell while 22% indicated 2-3 members in their household were unwell with COVID/ viral symptoms while the remaining 67% of respondents were happy that “no one” in their household was unwell. In sum, 33% households surveyed in Karnataka now have one or more individuals unwell.

In summary, the survey responses show that 16% of respondents in Maharashtra have one or more members in their family down with viral/COVID like symptoms, 21% households surveyed in Delhi have been affected and in Karnataka the ratio is much higher as 33% of households surveyed indicated that one or more family members are unwell. While it is true that a lot of people get affected by weather change particularly during the monsoon, the public health authorities need to be more proactive as in the case of Karnataka where 33% of households surveyed have indicated that more than one person in their family are unwell. With Covid variant Eris also showing major surge in places like New York and United Kingdom and lots of flights running daily, there is a high likelihood that this variant is already present in India and rising. Given the risk of repeated Covid infections and that of long covid, the wise approach would be to observe precautions of masking in indoor public spaces, crowded outdoor spaces and observe social distancing.