8 UK returnees tested positive for new variant Updated: Updated: Share Article AAA From the last week of December 2020, a total of eight people who returned to Telangana from the United Kingdom were detected with the new variant of SARS-COV-2. Officials from the State Health department said as many as 5,361 UK returnees were screened and 44 were found positive for COVID-19. The screening was conducted at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Shamshabad. They were admitted to Telangana Institute of Medical Sciences. Samples collected from them were sent for genome sequencing. Eight of them were found to be infected with the new variant and were isolated for a period of at least 14 days. Medical condition of none of the eight patients was serious.