On February 14, Singapore recorded the highest number of Coronavirus deaths since December 5, 2021. This surge comes at a time when the cases are plateauing in most parts of the world. Actor Rituparna Sengupta, who is based in Singapore, says, “The cases rose from 3,000 to 15,000 in a matter of days.”

She says the restrictions have now been relaxed, since life has to go on. “Institutional quarantine and isolation isn’t working out anymore. We’ve been instructed to quarantine at home if we fall sick. It’s not possible to keep imposing restrictions,” she says, adding that only a group of five is allowed in public places now.

Sengupta explains that it (the volatile Covid-19 situation) has become “mentally exhausting” now. “People have given up. The fear has waned away,” says the actor, who is happy that schools continue to function: “My daughter has started going to school. If a student tests positive (for Covid-19), they are required to isolate at home for five days and then they can go back to school.”

The actor, who tested positive for Covid-19 last month for the second time, is happy that she doesn’t need to get herself tested before flying out of the country for sometime now: “There’s a rule in Singapore that if you’ve had Covid-19, you need not test yourself for the next three months.”