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Covid 4th wave: Signs, symptoms, impact of the new Omicron XE variant - XE is a 'recombinant' mutant of two most prevalent Omicron variants, BA.1 and BA.2, which makes it even more infectious than Omicron.
Omicron was found in Nova Scotia wastewater weeks before it was discovered by the province — and even before the novel COVID-19 strain was reported by South Africa, according to new research from Dalhousie University in Canada. Explaining the situation, Professor Graham Gagnon, director of the Dalhousie University Centre for Water Resource Studies, said that "Our team detected Omicron , retrospectively, in Nova Scotia wastewater in mid-November and will be able to provide further information in the future."
The World Health Organization has said that in the next two months, over half of the people in Europe are on track to contract the Omicron variant of coronavirus. According to Hans Kluge, regional director for WHO's European office, "At this rate, the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) forecasts that more than 50 percent of the population in the region will be infected with Omicron in the next six to eight weeks."
West Bengal likely to impose partial lockdown from January 3 amid surge in COVID-19 case - As per data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Kolkata's weekly positivity rate increased to 12.5% while the state's increased to 5.47%.
The Health Ministry has advised states and UTs to enhance testing, strengthen hospital preparedness, increase the pace and coverage of vaccination drive and ensure strict enforcement of restrictions to counter the spread of infection wherever necessary.