new Delhi : India will conduct genome sequencing to check the emergence of new Covid-19 strains for at least a year, a government official said as the country begins lifting most pandemic-related restrictions amid falling cases .
Genome sequencing is a laboratory method for determining the overall genetic makeup of a specific organism or cell type.
While many districts are reporting at least 10-15 daily cases, many in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh are below zero, forcing the government to decide against extending the disaster management rules to curb the spread of COVID-19. Also, the government plans to open up vaccine booster doses to all adults.
A government official said the positive cases currently being reported are mostly showing cycle threshold (CT) levels above 25, which he said is a challenge to identify a new variant.
Hence the need for continuous genome sequencing.
In a cycle threshold, which is used for RT-PCR tests, the higher the value the lower the viral load (hence the challenge).
“It is a matter of great comfort to us that a small number of Covid cases are coming, but we have to be vigilant to check for new mutations of the virus. Only a few RT-PCR samples are showing Ct-values less than 25. Therefore, we are facing a slight challenge in performing genome sequencing. So, we will have to do genome sequencing for at least a year,” the said official said on condition of anonymity.
“Maximum cases are coming from Kerala, Maharashtra and Mizoram, while other states are reporting sporadic cases as low as 10-15. For example, 33 districts of Chhattisgarh and 48 districts of Madhya Pradesh are reporting zero cases,” the official said.
The official downplayed the chances of any wave of Covid-19 in the future, as India has managed over 1.82 billion jabs so far.
Questions emailed to the health ministry spokesperson remained unanswered till press time.
In the last 24 hours, India recorded 1,938 new cases and 60 deaths due to COVID.
In the last two years, India has reported over 43 million COVID cases and around 517,000 deaths.
On Wednesday, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan directed states and union territories to continue with the strategy of ‘test-track-treat-vaccination’ along with implementing COVID-appropriate behaviour. States will have to ensure adequate testing as per the guidelines.
The ministry issued directions to continue regular surveillance of Influenza Like Illness (ILI) cases and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) cases in all health facilities for early warning signs of the spread of the infection.
The increase in new cases, including in the cluster, should be monitored.
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