[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he government continues to use ‘Don’t Panic’ tag as its balm but doubts and despair are gradually instilling in the mind of the public as the Swine flu death toll is fast inching towards the 2000 mark. Today nearly 30,000 people are affected by the flu.
Though the Indian scientists have dismissed the American scientists’ findings that Swine flu - influenza A (H1N1)--has acquired mutations that make it more dangerous than previously circulating strains of H1N1 influenza, the people in India today have reasons to believe the American scientists in this regard.Findings by scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and reported in the scientific journal Cell Host & Microbe have contradicted ‘previous reports from the Indian health officials that the strain has not changed from the version of H1N1 that emerged in 2009 and has been circulating around the world ever since.’
According to the American scientists, the flu virus in India ‘seems to have acquired mutations that could spread more readily and, therefore, requires deeper studies.’ For this reason the scientists have said the Swine flu virus in India is ‘deadlier than ever.’
Today the rising cases of Swine flu in the country reveals that the government is poorly prepared to tackle the spread of the disease. We wonder whether the Health Ministry has laid down the wrong procedures. Or, is it that the laid down measures have not been followed properly due to technicalities? But we are sure somewhere something has gone terribly wrong in combating the flu. Urgent retrospection is required in this regard.
We may say today that the outbreak of the disease has affected the normal chores of the general public. We may not be wrong to say that attendances in educational institutions and offices are affected. The travel-volume has also been reduced tremendously. This grim situation if not arrested on time it is within anybody’s imagination the impact on the society including our economy.
