PremiumNew Delhi: The Indian SARS-COV-2 Genomics Consortia (INSACOG) on Sunday said that Omicron and its sub-lineages continue to be the dominant variant in India. Meanwhile, BA.2 and its descendent lineages, and BA.2.75 in particular has mostly been found in different parts of India over the last week.
The incidence of BA.5 has decreased in the last few weeks. Any surge in hospitalization or disease severity has not been observed during this time-period, said the latest INSACOG bulletin dated 12 September.
INSACOG is a consortium of 54 laboratories to monitor the genomic variations in SARS-CoV-2, functioning jointly under the observation of the health ministry and the department of biotechnology.
Highlighting the global scenario, the INSACOG bulletin said that the number of new weekly cases decreased by 12% during the last week as compared to the previous week.
“The number of new weekly deaths decreased by 5%, as compared to the previous week. The Omicron is the most abundant variant of concern (VOC) circulating worldwide, accounting for 99.4% of sequences reported globally. BA.5 Omicron descendent lineages continue to be dominant globally, with an increase in weekly prevalence from 84.8% to 86.8%," stated the bulletin, adding that the prevalence of BA.4 descendent lineages, including BA.4.6, decreased during the last week.
The INSACOG bulletin further said that the prevalence of BA.2 descendent lineages (BA.2.X) remained constant last week. The BA.2.75, an Omicron descendent lineage being monitored, still shows a relatively low prevalence globally, however, a number of countries have observed recent increasing trends.