New Delhi: Amid rising Covid cases in India, 436 cases of XBB1.16.1 mutated sub-variant have been detected in the country till now, revealed Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) data on Monday (April 17). The XBB1.16.1 is a mutation of Omicron’s infectious XBB1.16 variant. The XBB 1.16 variant was first found in January when two samples tested positive for the variant.
Till now, 436 cases of the subvariant have been found across 18 states and Union Territories, including Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat, and Haryana, according to INSACOG data.
The INSACOG data has shown that 2,735 cases of the XBB1.16 variant have been found in a total of 24 states and Union Territories.
India has recorded 9,111 new coronavirus infections, while active cases have increased to 60,313, according to the Union Health Ministry.
The INSACOG bulletin of March 27 said an increase in infection rate has been observed, especially in western, southern, and northern parts of India.
Among the samples collected till the third week of March, XBB continued to be the most commonly circulating Omicron sub-lineages, the bulletin said.
The INSACOG reports genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 by whole genome sequencing of samples from sentinel sites across the country and international passengers arriving in India.
Also Read: Amid COVID-19 Rise, 349 Samples Of Infectious New Variant XBB1.16 Found In India
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NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diarrhoea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.
