Nine more test positive in India for new COVID-19 strain

New Delhi, Jan 4 (UNI) As many as nine people tested positive in the past 24 hours in India for the new UK variant of Novel Coronavirus, taking the total number of such cases to 38, the Union Health Ministry said here on Monday.

As per an official statement released by the Ministry, a total of 10 samples have been detected in NIMHANS, Bengaluru; three in CCMB, Hyderabad; five in NIV, Pune; 11 in IGIB, Delhi; eight in NCDC, New Delhi and one in NCBG, Kolkata.

A new variant of SARS-CoV-2 was found in the UK, which according to experts, was said to be up to 70 per cent more transmissible. Several countries, including India, have suspended flights with the UK and launched screening of the UK returnees, to prevent the spread of the new mutant.

The samples for the UK strain are being tested at designated 10 Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortia (INSACOG) labs for genome sequencing.

All the infected persons have been kept in single room isolation in designated Health Care facilities by respective State Governments, while their close contacts are under quarantine, the Ministry added.

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