Nearly 100 people carrying Indian strain of Covid-19 arrived in England from India before India was added to UK's red list

LONDON: Nearly 100 people infected with the Indian variant of Covid-19 arrived in England in the month before India was added to the UK’s red list on April 23, even as cases were exponentially rising in India, new data reveals.
A total of 122 people arrived in England from Mumbai and Delhi airports between March 29 and May 2 infected with the "Indian" variant of Covid-19, known as B1.617.2, according to the latest Public Health England (PHE) technical report.
The technical briefing, dated May 13, shows that between the same dates there were a total of 128 cases of this variant of concern, which was first detected in India, found in England amongst people "with known recent travel history to India".
B1.617.2 was first detected in Britain in tests carried out on travellers arriving from India on the week commencing March 29. From March 29 up to and including the week commencing 19 April, 91 travellers infected with it entered England from Mumbai and Delhi.
B1.617.2 is believed to be behind the massive rise in cases in India. By mid-April India was recording 200,000 cases per day and by the end of April the death toll in India surpassed 200,000. Yet India was not added to the UK’s red list until April 23. Pakistan and Bangladesh were added to the UK red list on April 9.
The UK has seen the number of cases of this variant of concern almost triple in the past week to 1,313 from 520 the week before.
As of May 12 there have been four deaths from the variant in England, spurring UK PM Boris Johnson to warn that its spread could derail England’s goal to end its current lockdown on June 21.
Between March 29 and May 2 a total of 69 people landed in England from Mumbai and 53 from Delhi who were infected with B1.617.2.
In the week commencing 19 April, 30 infected travellers arrived in England from Mumbai and 14 from Delhi. In the week commencing 12 April, 16 infected travellers arrived in England from Mumbai and 10 from Delhi.
At this time arrivals only needed to isolate at home for 10 days and take two tests, plus have a negative test prior to departure. Now, since India is on the red list, only those with British residency rights may enter from India and they have to go into a government-approved quarantine hotel.
SAGE, the scientific body advising the UK government, in the minutes of its latest meeting, said that "it is highly likely that this variant is more transmissible than B.1.1.7 and it is a realistic possibility that it is as much as 50% more transmissible".
Chief medical officer for England Chris Whitty said the vaccine was still considered to be effective at preventing against severe diseases and death against this Indian variant but he was not sure if it would prevent mild illness and transmission. "We expect over time this variant will come to dominate the UK in the same way the UK variant did," he said.
The majority of cases of the Indian variant are in London and the northwest. The army has been sent to hotspots such as Bolton and Blackburn to help with mass testing of residents where mobile testing units have been deployed and door-to-door PCR testing is being offered.