The government said on Tuesday there was no need to panic over the mutated variant of SARS-CoV-2 detected in the UK, stating that there is no such variant or any significant mutation in the coronavirus
The tension has still been seen in India. NITI Aayog (Health) Fellow Dr VK Paul, during a press conference, also said that the mutated strain of SARS-CoV-2 detected in the UK will have no impact on the potential of emerging vaccines being They are developing in India and other countries.
“As of now, based on our discussions, a deep understanding of the available data and our deep assessment, there is no need to panic, but it is a reason to be more vigilant,” he said. Paul said that “this new challenge, we have to counter with our comprehensive efforts.” “We will be safe if we delete the genomic sequence,” he said.
So far there are no changes in treatment guidelines due to this mutation and vaccines that are being developed, particularly those in the country, will not be affected, Paul said. This variant of the virus in the UK is defined by a set of 17 changes or mutations, he said, adding that its tendency to enter the cells of the body has become higher and transmissibility has also increased with the mutation.
“It is also said that in these viruses, the transmissibility has increased by 70 percent, they can also be called super spreaders in some way. This virus increases infectivity but does not increase the propensity for death, hospitalization or severity of the disease. What is affected is the tendency to affect more people which in itself is cause for concern. It is an adverse event, “he said. Paul said there is no need to “panic” adding that “we have yet to detect such a virus in our country and for which intensive efforts are in the offing.” “Based on the data we have available, we have not detected such a mutation in Indian samples and the ones we have detected are negligible,” he said.
However, since the mutation in SARS-CoV-2 was reported in the UK, the government has made a number of decisions, Paul said. Passengers who have returned from the UK will be contacted, their clinical concerns will be understood and tests will be carried out on samples subject to genetic sequencing, he said.
Additionally, he said temporary travel restrictions to and from the UK have been imposed. “In an important step, all the recent virus samples that we have received in our designated labs have been prioritized for genetic sequencing since yesterday and the ICMR (Indian Council for Medical Research) and DBT (Department of Biotechnology) are all involved. on it and it’s being done holistically, “Paul said.
He urged people to remain vigilant and continue COVID-19 appropriate behaviors such as the use of masks and the maintenance of social distancing to save the achievements that the country has made in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic so far. In a query on measures taken by the government regarding people who returned from the UK in recent days, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said that thousands of genome sequences have been made during the pandemic.
He said that also, the Immigration Office will share the names of people who arrived from the United Kingdom or traveled through the United Kingdom between November 25 and December 23 with the states and territories of the union (UT). The State Surveillance Officer will contact, conduct tests and take action based on the results, Bhushan said.
The Union Ministry of Health also issued standard operating protocols for epidemiological surveillance on Tuesday. These include activities that will take place at the point of entry and in the community for all international passengers who have traveled to or through the UK in the last four weeks, from 25 November to 23 December. On the likelihood of a vaccine being available in January and the status of requests from Pfizer, Serum Institute of India, and Bharat Biotech requesting emergency clearance for their COVID-19 vaccines, Paul said that all three applications are pending with the Comptroller General of Drugs of India (DCGI).
Pfizer, he said, has not yet submitted data, while more data has been sought from the other companies. One of the companies has provided new data, Paul said. “Data is being examined. But this process is sacrosanct, driven by scientific rules and procedures and let’s see where it takes us. Once there is a decision from the drug regulator and the scientific groups to help make the decision, we will move forward.” . he said.
Noting that countries such as the United States, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Russia and Germany are showing new spikes in COVID cases, Bhushan said: “In comparison, India’s trajectory has shown a sustained decline in COVID-19 cases since mid-September. “India has reported 124 COVID-19 cases per million inhabitants in the last seven days compared to the world number of 588. India has reported two COVID-19 deaths per million people in the last seven days compared to the global figure of 10 deaths, “he said. The daily average of new cases has also shown a continuous decrease from 46,301 during the first week of November to 24,135 this week. The average daily deaths have also dropped from 556 during the first week of November to 343 this week, he said.
Bhushan said 26 states and UT have fewer than 10,000 active cases of COVID-19. Sixty-one percent of COVID-19 the deaths reported within 24 hours were from Maharashtra, West Bengal, Kerala, Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, it said.
While, 57 percent of the cases reported during the same period were from Kerala, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, said the health secretary.
(With PTI inputs)
.
