New Delhi: As panic spread among people after the new strain of Coronavirus surfaced in the United Kingdom, the Health Ministry sought to assure people that it was yet to be established by a designate lab that the new variant has entered India, and arriving on conclusions before that would be incorrect.
“To establish the presence of a mutant virus, it is necessary to establish a genome sequencing which could be done only through designated labs of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Department of Biotechnology, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and National Centre for Disease Control,” India Today quoted the Health Ministry as saying in a statement.
Notably, as many as 22 passengers flying from the United Kingdom to different cities in India over the past few days have tested positive for coronavirus. As per experts, nearly 50 per cent of these UK travellers could be potential carriers of the new more infectious COVID-19 strain.
“Genome sequencing has not so far been done in respect of the 15 passengers of the 590 who landed in Mumbai from the UK on December 22. Therefore, it’s incorrect to say that the new strain of the coronavirus has entered India until it is established by a designated laboratory.” the leading portal further quoted the Ministry as saying.
The new strain of Coronavirus which has surfaced can spread more rapidly and easily, authorities in the UK had earlier confirmed. This can lead to an increase in Coronavirus caseload, something which is already being witnessed in the UK. The new strain has been attributed to an increase in coronavirus caseload in the United Kingdom in the recent days.