Based on consultation with the emergency committee, the Director-General of World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, announced that COVID-19 is no more a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) — a status which he himself accorded to the disease three years ago. The extensive casualty and chaos caused by the pandemic at the global level made it a suffering for most of the inhabitants on the planet Earth. And thus, the world, at large, was dying to hear such a declaration. However, while it brings relief and hope, the announcement also entails the need to learn lessons and change the way we live with viruses. Over the period of three years, the world registered 76.5 crore infections and 69 lakh casualties. India, meanwhile, reported 4.43 crore cases and 5.3 lakh casualties. Apart from these statistics, the pandemic witnessed overwhelming hospitalisation of patients — badly stressing health systems across the world. The spirit-breaking images of jam-packed graveyards still haunt the conscience of many, especially all those who lost their near and dear ones. Now that case count and casualties have decreased substantially across the globe, the lifting of the PHIEC status was an obvious, anticipated move. However, the decision to remove the PHEIC status does not impact the ongoing efforts to control the disease or the need for continued international cooperation. The WHO will continue to monitor the global situation and provide guidance and support to countries as they work to contain the spread of the virus. At the ground level, behaviour in most of the public places has already normalised. So, there is little scope for change there. The governments, however, must not allow themselves to slip into complacency. Considering the lifting of the PHIEC status a technical shift, they should continue with limited surveillance in a routine manner. Occasional flare-ups in the case count have been reported frequently, indicating that resurgence of more contagious and virulent variants is still a possibility, however far-fetched it may seem. Furthermore, the world of viruses must be seen in a broader and dynamic perspective. Be it the case of Sars-Cov-2 or the monkeypox virus, scientists have indicated towards the increased instances of zoonotic spillover — a phenomenon exacerbated by unabating problems like climate change and invasion of animal habitats by humans. This simply means that the frequent spillover of viruses from animals to humans might be a new reality. Apart from ensuring that the buffer between animal and human territories is maintained on a sustainable basis, the scientific community should consistently strive towards conducting extensive research in the domains of vaccination and genome sequencing. As the world of viruses intermingles with that of humans, regular tracking of the viruses becomes an imperative. If there was one silver lining during the gloomy period of the pandemic, it was the commendable effort from the scientific community which undoubtedly prevented a situation that could have been unimaginably worse. It went beyond the expectations in delivering a rapid response to the global threat. This was combined with unprecedented international cooperation. It is now time to feasibly streamline the processes adopted during the pandemic. Humanity cannot afford another pandemic to get the scientific community moving, again! The discourses around viruses should find their due place in journals and media spaces. With the world of viruses evolving rapidly, the need for regular awareness has become more pronounced. It is evidently clear that viruses cannot be pushed in the corner, and we need to learn how to live with them. Another important aspect is the way in which the crowd should respond to the lifting of the PHEIC status. The practices of hand sanitisation, masking and regular check-ups and vaccinations should be inculcated in the human habit. Public places should always be equipped with facilities like hand sanitation. Regular public check-ups in remote and semi-urban areas should also be conducted. It is time to redefine our sanitation and well-being habits, rather than plunging into complacency.