BA.2 subvariant of Omicron more prevalent in India: Centre
Premium- In December last year, around 1,292 cases of the Omicron variant were found on genome sequencing, the government said, adding, ‘that number rose to 9,672 in January’
The BA.2 subvariant of the Omicron coronavirus is more prevalent in India now, the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Director said on Thursday while addressing a press conference on the Covid-19 situation in India.
In December last year, around 1,292 cases of the Omicron variant were found on genome sequencing, the government said, adding, “that number rose to 9,672 in January".
READ: Can BA.2 Omicron sub-variant escape RT-PCR test?
While little is known of the BA.2 omicron sub-variant, including whether it’s more infectious or deadly, it’s widely considered harder to detect because of its unique genetic traits that make it difficult to distinguish from other Covid variants.
Earlier, the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG), in its latest bulletin, said BA.2 lineage, an infectious sub-variant of Omicron, has been found in a substantial fraction in the country.
Apart from India, BA.2 cases have also been registered in Britain, Sweden and Norway, but to a much lesser extent than in Denmark.
Meanwhile, a prominent Harvard immunologist said that Covid-19 will become endemic and we can't eradicate it. He added that vaccinations and drugs will make some impact.
These remarks were made by Dr Shiv Pillai, Professor of Medicine and Health Sciences and Technology, Director, Harvard Immunology Graduate Program at the Harvard Medical School.
In an interview with ANI, Dr Pillai said, "I think it will become an endemic state where we will start to live with some level of the virus, hopefully, less virulent virus. So it's not such a bad disease for most people. I think that's where we will end up in maybe a few years. I think vaccinations will get better and the drugs are going to change things a lot."
The Harvard Immunologist said that drugs like Paxlovid and Cipla will probably change the course of this pandemic.
"So I think yes, we will get very good control with drugs and vaccines and we will be in a better place but we won't eradicate, it will be around," he said.
Noting that Omicron is going through community spread all over the world, he said, "In India, there is a variant of Omicron BA.2 that's also spreading, it is different from Omicron. In fact, Omicron BA.1 is the original, but it's slightly different."
Not much is yet known about stealth omicron, including how transmissible it is or whether it evades vaccines better, but WHO is investigating whether to make it a separate variant of concern.
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