A street vendor selling face masks at Old GGH in Vijayawada.
| Photo Credit: File photo
Two strains, namely KP.1 and KP.2, are responsible for the recent surge in COVID-19 cases in India, Union Health Minister J. P. Nadda told the Lower House during a recent session of Parliament.
He elaborated that these strains evolved from the JN1 Omicron variant and are highly transmissible, causing symptoms that include fever, cold, cough, sore throat, body ache, and fatigue, which were generally not severe. There has been no associated increase in hospitalisations or severe cases reported thus far. He admitted that the COVID-19 pandemic saw the emergence of various strains of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. He said that the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) have informed the Ministry that the two new strains are being monitored.
According to data shared in Parliament, the Ministry said that, until August 5, the KP mutant strain had been reported from Maharashtra (417), West Bengal (157), Uttarakhand (64), Rajasthan (48), and Gujarat (42). Until June 15, India had sequenced 336,892 SARS-CoV-2 viral genomes, out of which 301,451 were sequenced by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genome Sequencing (INSACOG).
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The Minister said the Government has taken measures to monitor the spread of new strains. “The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has implemented the Integrated Disease Surveillance Program (IDSP) in all 36 States/UTs as part of the National Health Mission. The programme is responsible for the surveillance of 40 plus epidemic prone diseases. A constant watch is maintained for emerging and re-emerging diseases. The Department of Health Research (DHR) has sanctioned 163 Viral Research and Diagnostic Laboratories (VRDLs) across India to improve virus detection and research,’‘ he said.
The House was also informed that the Central Government has launched the Pradhan Mantri-Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) to prepare the country for public health emergencies such as new and emerging disease outbreaks. PM-ABHIM will enhance the capacity of primary, secondary, and tertiary health care facilities and institutes to identify and manage new and emerging diseases.
“Some of the key activities under this initiative directed towards preparedness against future pandemics include the establishment of critical care hospital blocks, the strengthening of the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), establishment of regional NCDCs, setting up of a network of Bio-Safety Level-3 (BSL-3) laboratories, strengthening of public health units at points of entry, establishment of Health Emergency Operation Centres, bio-security preparedness, and strengthening of pandemic research for One Health,’‘ said the Minister.
Additionally, the Central government says it has taken steps to ramp up testing and genomic surveillance capabilities to identify and track the spread of this new variant. The NCDC says that the INSACOG network conducts Whole Genomic Sequencing for the timely detection of new SARS-CoV-2 variants.
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INSACOG is a consortium of 67 laboratories and 400+ sentinel sites to monitor the genomic variations in the SARS-CoV-2. The NCDC acts as the lead agency for Indian SARS CoV2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG). The IDSP is coordinating flow of samples from States to Regional Genome Sequencing Labs (RGSLs) and providing feedback to States. The IDSP is also collating Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) results and reporting them to states and UTs for necessary action along with key epidemiological inputs, the Ministry noted.
Commenting on the surge, Anil Bansal, a member of the Delhi Medical Council. said SARS-CoV-2 will keep evolving and newer strains will continue to emerge. “Maintaining hygiene, a high level of awareness, early detection, and management of the disease, strict Central government surveillance measures, keeping medical staff alert about virulent strains, and keeping hospitals in a state of preparedness to manage any surge is the way forward. The general public must also be alert and take particular care of vulnerable groups,’‘ he said.
Meanwhile, the Central Government further noted that States and Union Territories have been advised to ensure adequate testing in all districts as per COVID-19 testing guidelines, maintain a state of constant vigil over the COVID situation, ensure adequate testing, including a higher number of RT-PCR tests, and send positive samples for genome sequencing to INSACOG laboratories.
“They have also been told to promote community awareness to seek support in managing COVID-19, including adherence to respiratory hygiene, while working alongside the Central Government’s initiatives to ramp up testing and genomic surveillance,’‘ said the Minister.
(bindu.p@thehindu.co.in)
