A new mutation of the Delta Variant of COVID-19 which was being monitored and assessed in the Uk has been found in India “in very low numbers”. Seven cases of the new Covid variant have been detected in Indore in a genome sequencing report released from National Centre of Disease Control (NCDC).
Two of them are Army officers posted in the Mhow Cantonment, said Indore chief medical and health officer Dr BS Saitya. The samples were collected in September.
Scientists of the INSACOG network monitoring variations in SARS-CoV-2 added that the AY.4.2-related findings still carry a high level of uncertainty, and it is still early to say this lineage carries higher risk of illness and/or death, a ToI report added.
The new variant has been classed as a Variant Under Investigation (VUI) amid concerns of its increased growth rate, with experts warning it is a reminder that the pandemic is not over.
On October 21, the US Centers for Disease Centers for Diseases Control said it has less than 10 reported cases of AY.4.2 in its database so far, but the UK health authorities have found 15,120 cases of VUI-21OCT-01—the other name for AY.4.2—since it was first detected in July.
When contacted, Dr Anurag Agrawal, director at CSIR Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB) in Delhi, said, “ AY.4.2 is present in India based on the revised definition but at very low numbers, less than 0.1%.” IGIB is one of the main laboratories involved in the INSACOG genomic surveillance exercise .
Dr Agrawal said further details and the exact number of AY.4.2 in India would be available soon. AY.4.2 is a descendant of the Delta variant, which has so far been considered the most dangerous form, affecting millions.
