So far, new coronavirus strain not seen in India: Government

The government on Tuesday said that the new ‘fast-spreading’ strain of Covid-19 has not been seen in India so far.

Addressing a press conference, Dr VK Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, assured citizens that there is no need to panic, but it is a cause to be more vigilant.

“The new strain of COVID-19 in the United Kingdom has increased transmissibility. This mutation is not affecting the severity of the disease. Case fatality is not affected by this mutation,” he said.

“There is no change in treatment guidelines due to this mutation and the vaccines that are being developed, particularly those in the country, will not be impacted,” Paul added.

Meanwhile, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said there has been a sustained decline in Covid-19 cases in India since mid-September.

Earlier today, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued a new set of guidelines for the travellers arriving from the UK.

This came after several flyers from the UK tested positive for Covid-19 on their arrival.

On Monday, the government banned all the flights originating from the UK to India till December 31 to contain the spread of new variant of Covid-19.