Govt confirms presence of South African, Brazilian corona variants in India, says don’t let guard down

After the UK variants, the Narendra Modi government on Tuesday confirmed that two other variants – South African and Brazilian – have been detected in some travellers recently. During the daily press conference, ICMR Director General Dr Balram Bhargava said that these two variants have been found in the flyers. They have been quarantined. Those who came in contact of these travellers have also been traced and isolated. The government is keeping a tab on their health. Once again, the government has reiterated that people must not take ‘things for granted’ in terms of lesser number of coronavirus cases. Dr VK Paul, member of the Niti Aayog said that people should continue the good practices of wearing masks and hand hygiene. The crux of the matter was that even though India is reported fewer number of cases, the unpredictable nature of the virus must be kept in mind.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka government has announced new Covid protocols. According to the state government, those travelling from Kerala would be required to carry a negative RT-PCR test report, which should not be older than 72 hours. Even the international flyers would also require negative RT-PCR report.

The latest trend of coronavirus in India has puzzled several health experts as well as scientists. Despite being the second-most populous nation in the world, India has reported a far lesser number of cases. While the jury is still out, some have said that Indians may have attained herd immunity already. Others have associated the spread of the coronavirus with temperature also.