Dear Express Explained reader, The Covid-19 pandemic is back on top of my newsletter to you. The announcement of a new variant of the coronavirus with a large number of unusual mutations — which has promptly been designated as a ‘variant of concern’ by the WHO — has triggered the now familiar policy responses of air travel shutdowns and stepped-up monitoring and surveillance. We should know soon enough how dangerous this new Omicron variant is; there is no reason to panic just yet. While the news continues to develop, Kaunain Sheriff M summarised what we know of Omicron so far. Earlier in the week, before the announcement of the new variant, Amitabh Sinha had written about the ongoing surge in cases in Europe; that situation has not improved, and it adds to the concern as winter sets in rapidly across the northern hemisphere, people are driven indoors, and the threat from a fast-transmitting variant of the virus increases greatly. India this week announced the release of oil from its strategic reserves as part of a global coordinated response against the restriction of crude output by the OPEC+ cartel. Karunjit Singh and Anil Sasi explained why oil consuming countries keep strategic reserves, why the step had to be taken, and what it is expected to achieve. There is a lot of buzz around cryptocurrencies, and a Bill on regulating these will be tabled in Parliament’s Winter Session beginning tomorrow. For those of you who’d like a crash course on the basics of digital currencies, this short primer by Anil and Pranav Mukul may be helpful. For a sense of what is at stake for a range of Indians ahead of the new regulatory law, read our Sunday Story on ‘Crypto Cash’, and the explainer on how other countries are dealing with the challenge of framing regulation around the crypto phenomenon. Among the slew of other important Bills coming up before Parliament in the days ahead is one on personal data protection. This law has been in the works for a while now, and deals with issues that touch each one of us. Aashish Aryan, who has been reporting on the proposed legislation, put together a very useful explainer on the issues in the debate, and the road travelled so far. Do read. Stay safe and stay aware. Irrespective of how dangerous the new Omicron variant turns out to be — it does look like it is extremely transmissible and has also shown some signs of immune escape — the pandemic is not over yet. Remember, India’s second wave in April-May followed a surge in Europe and America in the winter of 2020-21, and we must do all we can in terms of protecting ourselves. Jabs and masks are key, as they have been for months now. Sincerely, Monojit (monojit.majumdar@expressindia.com) If you received this newsletter as a forward, you can subscribe to it here | Do read our Explained articles here | .png)
No comments:
Post a Comment