Gujarat: Four UK returnees detected with new COVID strain in Ahmedabad, isolated

At least 4 UK returnees in Gujarat tested positive for the new UK strain of the coronavirus, a health department official announced on January 1. According to a PTI report, nearly 15 COVID-19 positive samples were traced in Ahmedabad via genome sequencing by the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune, of which, four detected with UK’s variant were isolated immediately at Ahmedabad's SVP Hospital. 

"All the passengers who had reached Ahmedabad from the UK were screened, and the samples of those who had tested positive for coronavirus were sent to the NIV. We have received intimation that the UK strain of coronavirus has been detected in four such cases," PTI quoted the Principal Secretary (Health), Jayanti Ravi as saying. He added that the results of the 15 samples that tested positive for coronavirus on arrival in Ahmedabad were pending with the NIV. In accordance with the Centre's guidelines, the patients were quarantined to prohibit the spread of the more contagious mutated genome. 

Read: 69 New Coronavirus Cases Reported In Goa

Read: Sixty-nine New Coronavirus Cases Reported In Goa

India’s health ministry told reporters that the government scrambled to enact the preventive strategy with rigorous testing and tracing of the overseas travellers and UK returnees at the airport to detect the entry of the mutant variant at the earliest and separate those infected with the new strain with immediate effect. The strategy incorporates the suspension of the air carriers’ operation from England and London. The rule came into effect at midnight of December 23 and will be active until January 7. Authorities have also initiated mandatory testing of all UK- returned air passengers through RT-PCR test at the arrivals. 

Total 29 cases 

Thus far at least 29 total cases of the new UK strain have been detected in the country. Earlier, three cases were detected at a lab in Bengaluru, one in Hyderabad, nearly 10 cases in Delhi, and over five cases in Pune, according to reports. The variant first caused an alarm in the UK in September and was announced spreading in parts of England and London by UK’s health secretary Matt Hancock, who called the variant 70 percent more transmissible and constituting majority of cases across England as the government scrambled to curb the infection rate via stringent tier-4 restrictions.

(with inputs from PTI) 

Read: 3 Samples Sent To CCMB Found Positive For UK Variant Of Coronavirus

Read: Turkey Finds 15 People Carrying New UK Coronavirus Variant

(Image Credit: PTI)