India’s coronavirus surge is being driven by ‘double mutant variant’, making containment even harder
- India’s health ministry first acknowledged the presence of such a ‘double mutant’ at the end of March but has downplayed it since
- India’s second wave – given its size and rapid pace – will worry other nations that have just about managed their own outbreaks
“This is a variant of interest we are following,” Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organization’s technical lead officer on Covid, told reporters on Friday.
“Having two of these mutations, which have been seen in other variants around the world, are concerning,” she said, adding that there was a similarity with mutations that increase transmission as well as reduce neutralisation, possibly stunting the ability of vaccines to curb them.
The new strain underscores the insidious nature of viruses and threatens to thwart containment efforts in India, despite stringent measures such as the world’s largest lockdown last year. An exploding outbreak in India risks undoing a hard-won victory over the pathogen for others too, especially as this strain has now jumped to at least 10 other countries.
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The new variant, called B. 1.617, was initially detected in India with two mutations – the E484Q and L452R. It was first reported late last year by a scientist in India and more details were presented before the WHO on Monday, according to Van Kerkhove.