New Delhi, May 20
With media reports citing cases of Covid-19 infections surging in Southeast Asia, bringing fresh fears about the disease that affected millions of people and the global economy, health experts on Tuesday dismissed them as seasonal trends of flu.
As per media reports, the weekly Covid-19 infections in Singapore surged by 28 per cent from 11,100 in late April to 14,200 in the first week of May, with hospitalisations also rising 30 per cent.
Hong Kong recorded 31 virus-related deaths in the week ending May 3, the city’s highest weekly toll in a year. New infections in Hong Kong rose to 1,042 in the week ending May 10, up from 972 the previous week.
“Rising Covid cases in Southeast Asia are attributed to seasonal trends of flu cases. Most of the cases are mild and do not need any hospitalisation,” Dr. Harshal R Salve, Additional professor at, the Centre for Community Medicine at AIIMS, New Delhi, told.
India also is seeing a slight uptick in cases. A review held on Monday by the Ministry of Health concluded that the current situation in India is “under control,” with just 257 active cases reported nationwide as of May 19.