India’s first case of Omicron subvariant BA.4 found in Hyderabad: Report

Covid-19 update: The contact tracing of the patient who tested positive for Omicron subvariant BA.4 in Hyderabad has begun.

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New Delhi: India's first case of Omicron subvariant BA.4 has been confirmed in Telangana’s Hyderabad, ANI cited sources as saying. The BA.4 strain of coronavirus was detected through a genomic surveillance program. "The Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) has confirmed the first case of the BA.4 Omicron variant in India has been reported from Hyderabad," sources told the news agency. INSACOG has also convened a meeting to discuss the new subvariant, the news agency reported.

"After detecting the first case of BA.4, the contact tracing has already been started of those who came in contact with a person who travelled to Hyderabad from South Africa. He was asymptomatic and the sample was collected on May 9," sources added.

The BA.4 and BA.5 variants of Omicron have been detected during the fifth Covid-19 wave in South Africa and have also been reported in the US and Europe, as per ANI. 

Current Covid-19 scenario in India

India logged 2,259 new Covid-19 infections and 20 deaths in the last 24 hours. The coronavirus caseload in the country stands at 4,31,31,822, while the death toll climbed to 5,24,323, as per the Union Health Ministry data on Friday (May 20). The active Covid-19 cases are currently at 15,044. 

Meanwhile, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan assessed the Covid-19 vaccination program with all the states and union territories. Bhushan recommended the states and UTs to ramp up the vaccination drive in the review meeting. The Union Health Ministry has also planned to start "Har Ghar Dastak-2.2" campaign in June and July to expedite vaccination across the country. India has so far administered over 191.96 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses under the nationwide inoculation drive. 

(With agency inputs)