AGRA: After an alert by the
Uttar Pradesh government over the new strain of
Covid-19, as many as 58 people with
travel history to the
United Kingdom between December 9 and 22 were identified by the district
health department, till Thursday afternoon.
Samples of all these people have been sent for lab testing. They have been directed to stay in home isolation for 28 days. Family members and close contacts of these people will also be tested for Covid-19.
Meanwhile, a male symptomatic patient who had recently returned from the
UK has caused some worry for the health department officials. The first
RT-PCR report of the patient was negative. Health department will be again sending samples of the individual for lab testing.
Chief medical officer RC Pandey said, “At least 58 people who had recently travelled to the UK have been identified in
Agra district. Their samples have been sent for RT-PCR testing. Out of these, reports suggest 10 have been tested negative." India had on December 22 suspended all flights to and from the UK till December 31 after a new, faster-spreading variant of Novel Coronavirus was detected in that country.
District magistrate Prabhu N Singh said, “Samples of those found positive will be sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune, for genomic sequencing to determine whether it is the strain detected in the UK. Those with travel history to the UK, who
tested positive, will be kept in hospital. Required arrangements have been made in this regard."
The CMO also said, “Genome sequencing involves revealing the structure of any organism with the help of automated DNA sequencing methods and computer software. In the contest of Covid-19, the method will be able to help trace the new strain of the virus."