Gujarat reports the first case of "XE variant" COVID in Vadodara.
Written byTimes Magazine
The central government has also written letters to five states announcing a slight increase in COVID cases to monitor the spread of new infections.
The XE variant of the coronavirus, more contagious but not more severe than Omicron, has been discovered in Vadodara in Gujarat.
This week, officials in Mumbai also reported a similar case of variant XE from samples isolated in February. Still, officials from India's Sarscov2 Genome Consortium (INSACOG), a network of laboratories tracking the sequence, and the Union Health Department have not. To confirm if it is Option XE.
Also, on Friday (April 8), approximately 34 students at the Gujarat National Law University (GNLU) Gandhinagar tested positive for Covid-19, with the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation (GMC) declaring the campus a restricted area.
GNLU started physical classes on April 4 and scheduled the first week of first-year students to welcome two waves – admitted in 2020 and 2021 – which were expected to be discontinued on April 7 once the first cases were discovered.
Also Read: How Portable is the New "XE" Covid-19 Version? Answer from IMA Covid Working Group
Meanwhile, the central government has also written letters to five states announcing a slight increase in Covid-19 cases to continue monitoring the spread of new infections; officials said Friday (April 8).
The Union Health Ministry has urged the five states, namely Kerala, Haryana, Maharashtra, Delhi, and Mizoram, to monitor the spread of infections and take rapid steps to contain the spread of Covid.
In his letter, Rajesh Bhushan, Minister of Health of the United States, urged these countries to carry out regular monitoring and follow-up on emerging problem areas.
"The number of Covid-19 cases in India has seen a sustained and significant decline over the past 2 months, with the country news less than 1,000 new cases per day over the past few days. Moreover, the weekly positive percentage remains below 1 percent," the letter said.
The letter sent to the Secretary-General (Health) in Delhi listed weekly new cases out of 724 new topics in the week ending January 1.
Bhushan has instructed all these states to continuously monitor clusters of new Covid-19 cases, conduct adequate testing, take necessary steps in high positive areas, and regularly monitor influenza-like illnesses and SARI cases in all healthcare facilities. To provide early warning signs to detect the spread of infection.
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