INSACOG Confirms BA.4, BA.5 Variants Of Omicron In India

A genomic monitoring programme in Hyderabad discovered India's first instance of the BA.4 subvariant of the Omicron strain of coronavirus.

Representational Image. (Source: Getty Images)

New Delhi: The existence of Omicron subvariant BA.4 and BA.5 in India was confirmed by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) in a press statement issued on Sunday. Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 may be found all over the world. In South Africa, both the BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron variants have been linked to the fifth Covid wave, and reports from the US and Europe have just surfaced.

INSACOG is a collaboration between the Union Health Ministry, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

A genomic monitoring programme in Hyderabad discovered India's first instance of the BA.4 subvariant of the Omicron strain of coronavirus.

The instances discovered in India were detailed in an INSACOG press release. It said that a 19-year-old female from Tamil Nadu had been infected with the SARS-CoV-2 BA.4 strain.

“The patient has shown only mild clinical symptoms and has been fully vaccinated. The patient had no travel history," reads the press statement. 

INSACOG confirms BA.4 & BA.5 variants of #COVID19 in India. pic.twitter.com/YJsoSuLt5f

— ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2022

A traveller to South Africa tested positive for the BA.4 sub-variant of Omicron, according to the consortium. “A south African traveler was reported positive for the BA.4 variant on arrival at Hyderabad airport," it said. 

In addition, INSACOG reported that an 80-year-old Telangana man has tested positive with the BA. percent sub variation of Omicron. “The patient has shown only mild clinical symptoms and has been fully vaccinated. The patient had no travel history" the release said. 

As a precaution, the agency has begun tracing the BA.4 and BA.5 patients' contacts.

According to data from the Union Health Ministry, India recorded 2,226 new coronavirus infections on Sunday, bringing the total number of Covid-19 cases to 4,31,36,371, with 14,955 active cases.

The BA.4 sub type was first identified in South Africa on January 10, 2022, and now accounts for 35% of positive testing. BA.5 was discovered on February 25th, and it now accounts for 20% of infections in multiple South African provinces.

In addition to South Africa, BA.4 and BA.5 have been found in a number of other nations. BA.4 was found in Austria, the United Kingdom, the United States, Denmark, Belgium, Israel, Germany, Italy, Canada, France, the Netherlands, Australia, Switzerland, and Botswana, according to a study from the United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA).

On the same day, health officials in Portugal, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, Denmark, France, Austria, Belgium, Hong Kong, Australia, Canada, Israel, Norway, Pakistan, Spain, and Switzerland recognised BA.5.

Despite the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) telling Trusted Source on 4 May that "testing and sequencing remain critically important," few nations are sequencing substantial numbers of positive tests.