An international flier, who reached the city recently, has been found positive for the South African-strain of the coronavirus and three others have tested positive for the UK-strain, senior officials of the health department said on Saturday.
The confirmation about the presence of these strains reached the health department on Friday, days after the samples were sent to the National Institute of Biomedical Genomics in Kalyani. Officials said these passengers had flown into Calcutta in February end and had undergone the mandatory RT-PCR test for Covid-19.
Till Saturday evening, one of the three passengers with the UK-strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has been admitted to the Infectious Diseases (ID) Hospital in Beleghata, health department officials said.
No Deaths Due to UK Covid-19 Variant Reported in India, Say Health Ministry Sources
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As many as 178 people in India have tested positive for coronavirus variant that emerged in the United Kingdom last year, but not a single death has been attributed to the UK mutation so far. At present, the country doesn t have any cases of the Brazilian or South African variants. If and when in genome sequencing we are able to detect one of these variants, we will start tracking them. And, as far as the 178 cases of the UK mutant are concerned, there have been no deaths, a source at the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare told News18.
Protein deficiency behind surge in coronavirus infection in US, Europe
The scientists noted the deficiency of AAT protein is much higher among Europeans and Americans than Asians, which leads to higher levels of neutrophil elastase that helps SARS-CoV-2 to spread more quickly
BusinessToday.In | February 10, 2021 | Updated 01:44 IST
According to scientists, the main reason behind the slow spread of mutant coronavirus in Asia compared to the West is because of deficiency of a particular human protein
While a surge in COVID-19 cases has forced several European and western countries to limit social gatherings, shut down bars, open field hospitals, such measures have become distant memories in much of Asia, especially India. For months now, life across Asia, where the virus first emerged, has mostly returned to normal.
Updated Jan 03, 2021 | 15:15 IST
Till date, the strain of Covid has been found in one passenger. But there is alarm over KMC s inability to track 20 passengers. Kolkata municipality unable to track more than 20 UK passengers | Image for representation | Photo Credit: ANI
Kolkata: One more passenger who returned to the state from foreign lands has tested positive for Covid. This takes the number of Covid patients under the radar for carrying the UK strain to three. As of Sunday, the strain of Covid has been found in one passenger. But there is an alarm over the civic body’s inability to track 20 passengers who arrived by the same flight as the one with the fresh, more infectious strain. 7 others have left their addresses in the city and gone somewhere else.