The second most impacted country in the world by the pandemic recently decided to allow international passenger flights from high-risk countries, but has also implemented stricter border screening measures. Following the World Health Organization's declaration that the new variant is concerning, Prime Minister Modi emphasized the importance of monitoring all international arrivals and testing them according to guidelines, particularly those from high-risk countries. The Omicron variant, first identified in South Africa, is believed to spread more rapidly than other strains. India has seen a decrease in new cases due to increased vaccinations and immunity from past infections, with daily cases dropping by half since September. It was stated that there were 8,318 new cases reported in the past day. However, the emergence of a new variant, which has a spike protein that is significantly different from the original coronavirus strain that vaccines are designed for, has caused concern worldwide and led to turmoil in financial markets. Modi emphasized the importance of people being more careful and taking necessary precautions like wearing masks and practicing social distancing. He stressed the need to be proactive in response to the new variant and instructed for intensive containment and active surveillance to be maintained in areas with high case numbers. Additionally, he called for technical support to be provided to states experiencing a surge in cases. Modi instructed officials to increase the speed of administering second doses, as reported.