PUNE: Union health officials on Thursday said there had been a slight drop in Covid-19 samples being sent to the sentinel sites for genome sequencing following the reduction in overall cases in many parts of the country.
National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) director Dr Sujeet Singh told TOI that each state should send at least 15 samples a week for genome sequencing, subject to the number of active cases. Maharashtra and Kerala are currently sending the maximum number of samples for genome sequencing.
A central health ministry official said there were over 300 sentinel sites, but many districts had seen a reduction in cases.“Hence, it is possible that the sentinel sites are not getting adequate samples. The states should ensure that the samples are sent for genome sequencing, as the country needs to keep a check on the Covid variants,” the official said.
Since April-May this year, Maharashtra is sending 100 samples (from all 36 districts) every month to the CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology. The state has so far reported 103 samples of Delta plus variant. “Kerala is also sending adequate samples,” Singh said.
The Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG), a group of 28 laboratories in the country monitoring the genomic variations, on Monday said a statement that the newer Mu and C.1.2 variants coronavirus have not been found in India so far. The consortium stated that the Delta variant and its sub-lineages remained the main “variant of concern” in India and the world.
The bulletin added that AY.4 was the most frequently seen sub-lineage in the recent sequences from India, as well as globally. “No further rise in cases pertaining to the C.1.2 variant has been noted and it seemed to have plateaued at 2% in South Africa, where it was originally detected,” the bulletin stated.
‘Pandemic in country may reach endemic stage within six months’
PUNE: National Centre for Disease Control director Dr Sujit Singh on Thursday told TOI that the Covid-19 pandemic in India was likely to reach the endemic stage in the next six months. He said, “Currently, there are no new variants in the country. A new variant alone will not cause a third wave as it will depend on human behaviour and antibodies developed among the community. Singh, however, expressed concern over the upcoming festival season that was likely to lead to crowding
