No clear evidence on Omicron’s immune evasion, severity in India; Delta still variant of concern: INSACOG

KEY STORY

• The Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) has said that there is no clear evidence yet regarding the transmissibility, immune evasion or severity of Omicron in India.

• INSACOG is a consortium of 38 government-owned laboratories established to monitor genomic variations of the virus that causes coronavirus.

• In its latest bulletin dated December 13 and published on Monday, the consortium said public health measures and investigations are being conducted to look into the new variant.

• It also noted that the variant continues to grow rapidly as a variant of concern globally.

• “At this time, there is no clear evidence regarding transmissibility, immune evasion, or severity in India,” INSACOG said.

• It further said that while the Delta variant, including its B.1.617.2 (AY) and AY.x sublineages, continues to be the main variant of concern globally, Omicron continues to grow rapidly.

• “Cases have continued to increase in South Africa, with a smaller but clear rise in hospitalisations. Pending complete genomic sequencing, in the UK, S-gene target failure has shown a very rapid increase in likely Omicron cases and this would represent a significant growth advantage against Delta,” the INSACOG said in its weekly bulletin.

• The consortium said that while there are some indicators that the disease may be milder with Omicron, there is insufficient data to determine whether this is because of prior infections or vaccination.

• “There is insufficient data for Omicron severity in unvaccinated or partially vaccinated older subjects,” INSACOG said.

CONCLUSION

• So far, India has reported 161 cases of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus across 11 states and Union Territories, including Maharashtra and Delhi.

• Earlier today, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said that the government is monitoring the situation with experts on daily basis.

• “Drawing from our experience during the first and second waves and to ensure that we don’t face problems when the concerned variant spreads, we have arranged for a buffer stock of important medicines,” he told the Rajya Sabha.