India on Tuesday reported 42,640 new Covid-19 cases, the lowest in three months. Also, 81,839 people were discharged and 1,167 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours, the Union health ministry said.
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India’s Health Ministry todday said that INSACOG had informed that the Delta Plus variant, “currently a variant of concern (VOC)”, has these characteristics—increased transmissibility, stronger binding to receptors of lung cells and potential reduction in monoclonal antibody response.
22 cases of the Delta Plus variant of the coronavirus have been detected in India, with 16 of them being reported from Maharashtra and the remaining from Madhya Pradesh and Kerala, the government said
India is among the 10 countries where the Delta Plus mutation has been found so far, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said at a press briefing.
A statement issued by the Union Health Ministry stated INSACOG had informed that the Delta Plus variant, “currently a variant of concern (VOC)”, has these characteristics—increased transmissibility, stronger binding to receptors of lung cells and potential reduction in monoclonal antibody response.
Besides India, the Delta Plus variant has been found in the US, UK, Portugal, Switzerland, Japan, Poland, Nepal, China and Russia.
The Delta variant is found in 80 countries around the world, including India, and it is a variant of concern, Bhushan said.
Cases of the Delta Plus variant have been detected in Maharashtra’s Ratnagiri and Jalgaon and parts of Kerala and Madhya Pradesh.
The Union Health Ministry has advised Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh that the Public Health Response measures have to become more focused and effective. The States Chief Secretaries have been advised to take up immediate containment measures in the districts and clusters including preventing crowds and intermingling of people, widespread testing, prompt tracing as well as vaccine coverage on a priority basis.
“Any variant’s transmissibility and virulence decides whether it is a variant of concern or interest. Delta variant is found in 80 countries around the world, including India and it is a variant of concern.
“Delta Plus variant has been detected in nine countries besides India. In India, 22 cases of Delta Plus variant have been found and it is in the category of variant of interest, (and) not yet in the category of variant of concern,” Bhushan said at the briefing.
He said the Health Ministry has released an advisory on the kind of public health response that Maharashtra, MP and Kerala should initiate to address this issue which “presently looks fairly small in terms of number but we would not want this to assume significant proportions”.
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According to the Health Ministry statement, it has alerted and advised Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh to take up immediate containment measures, enhanced testing, tracking and vaccination in districts and clusters where the Delta Plus variant of COVID-19 is found.
“Union Health Secretary has communicated to these three states this variant has been found in genome sequenced samples from Ratnagiri and Jalgaon Districts of Maharashtra; Palakkad and Pathanamthitta Districts of Kerala; and Bhopal and Shivpuri Districts of Madhya Pradesh,” the statement said.
The Union Health Ministry has advised Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh that the public health response measures, while broadly remaining the same as have been implemented by them earlier, have to become more focused and effective.
The chief secretaries of these states have been advised to take up immediate containment measures in the districts and clusters, including preventing crowds and intermingling of people, widespread testing, prompt tracing as well as vaccine coverage on a priority basis, the statement said.