New COVID-19 strain cases now 38 in India |
India`s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on 4th January said that a total of 38 samples have been found to be positive with the new COVID-19 UK variant genome across India. According to the ministry, there are 10 cases in Bengaluru, 3 in Hyderabad, 5 in Pune, 19 in New Delhi, and one in Kolkata. The Health Ministry said that the NCBS, InSTEM, Bengaluru, CDFD Hyderabad, ILS Bhubaneswar, and NCCS Pune have so far found no UK mutant virus. The positive samples are being tested at 10 INSACOG labs for genome sequencing. The Union Health Ministry said that all these patients have been kept in single room isolation in designated Health Care facilities by respective State Governments. Their close contacts have also been put under quarantine. Comprehensive contact tracing has been initiated for co-travelers, family contacts, and others. Also, genome sequencing on other specimens is going on. The ministry said the situation is under careful watch, and regular advice is being provided to the States for enhanced surveillance, containment, testing & dispatch of samples to INSACOG labs. Earlier on 2nd January, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) stated that India became the first country in the world to successfully isolate and culture the new, mutated strain of the novel coronavirus. The apex medical body tweeted the UK-variant of the virus, with all signature changes is now successfully isolated and cultured at the National Institute of Virology (NIV) from the clinical specimens collected from UK-returnees.
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