Covid-19: Possibility of new variants of Omicron in Delhi

New Delhi, April 21: With the latest spike of more than 1,000 Covid-19 cases in the national capital in a single day, health experts have not ruled out possibilities of new variants of Omicron.

Delhi on Wednesday reported 1,009 fresh Covid-19 cases, the highest since February 10, while the positivity rate is 5.70 per cent. The top expert believes that there are eight variants of Omicron and among them, one is dominating which can be held responsible for the surge in cases. Also read | Surge in Covid-19 cases unlikely to cause fourth wave in India, says expert Dr SK Sarin, Director, Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS), said there was a possibility of new variants of Omicron in Delhi, adding that the samples at the ILBS lab had been sequenced. "There is a possibility that new variants are emerging of the Omicron and they are being sequenced," said Dr Sarin. Dr Sarin further said there were eight variants of Omicron and among them, one was dominating. "I think by today at our institute ILBS many samples have been sequenced and I think there are eight variants of which one is now dominating, we will come to know slowly," he added. According to sources, BA.2.12.1 is the variant which is a sibling of Omicron and is also responsible for the sudden surge in Delhi. Dr Sarin warned and said people needed to be careful. "I would suggest people should be very careful. There is a fear that children may get infected because they are not adequately vaccinated. People must wear masks," he added. Also read | 12 test positive for Covid-19 at IIT Madras  Since the beginning of April, India has been continuously registering a rise in COVID cases daily. However, on Monday, the country recorded about a 90 per cent jump with 2,183 Covid-19 cases. Also read | Surge in Covid-19 cases unlikely to cause fourth wave in India, says expert -PTC News