Pune: As Covid cases continue to rise in India, the Central as well as state governments are taking all measures to ensure that the outbreak does not spiral into a fresh wave. Speaking on the current Covid situation, Serum Institute of India (SII) chief executive officer Adar Poonawalla assured that the prevalent strain of Covid-19 is mild. He added that the company has already produced five to six million doses of the Covovax vaccine. Poonawalla made the remark talking to reporters amid rising cases of coronavirus infections in the country since March.
“Currently, the Covid strain is not severe, it’s just a mild strain. Just for precautionary measures, elderly people can get the booster dose, but it would be their choice whether or not to take it. Five to six million doses of Covovax are available. We will also produce the same amount of Covishield doses in the next two to three months,” said Poonawalla.
“We are providing Covovax in the US and Europe. It is the only COVID vaccine made in India which is approved in the US and Europe. Currently, the demand is very small,” Poonawalla added.
India has recorded 12,193 fresh COVID-19 cases in a span of 24 hours, with the number of active cases of the infection going up to 67,556, the Union health ministry said today.
As per a health bulletin of the Maharashtra government on Friday, the XBB.1.16 variant of Omicron is currently the dominant strain in the state. The Centre on Friday asked eight states, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, to maintain a strict watch and take preemptive action in any area of concern to control any emerging spread of infection.
XBB.1.16 Is Now A ‘Variant Of Interest’
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) has upgraded Omicron subvariant XBB.1.16 to a Covid-19 “variant of interest” (VOI) due to its “sustained increase” and “growth advantage” reported from several countries. XBB.1.16 is a descendent lineage of XBB, a recombinant of two BA.2 descendent lineages. XBB.1.16 was first reported on January 9, this year and designated a variant under monitoring (VUM) on March 22.
the WHO noted that although there has been a “slight increase” in XBB.1.16-related hospitalisation in India and Indonesia, the levels are “much lower than seen in previous variant waves”. Further, “available information does not suggest that XBB.1.16 has additional public health risk relative to XBB.1.5 and the other currently circulating Omicron descendent lineages.
So far, 3,648 sequences of the Omicron XBB.1.16 variant have been reported from 33 countries, including India, on open research platform GISAID, the global health body said.
Also Read : World Liver Day 2023: 5 Causes Of Liver Diseases; Check Symptoms Of Fatty Liver
“Following a sustained increase in the prevalence of XBB.1.16 and growth advantage reported from several countries, WHO classifies XBB.1.16 as a VOI,” said Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead for Covid-19 response at WHO on Friday.
