The Delta Plus variant of the novel coronavirus has been notified as a Variant of Concern (VOC) in India, the Union Health Ministry said in a release on Tuesday evening. The Union Health Ministry had on Tuesday told the media that there have been 22 cases of Delta Plus detected in India and the government has alerted the states where the cases have been reported. On Wednesday morning, the government said that around 40 cases have been detected so far in the three states — Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala.
Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan has said that this variant has been found in samples from Ratnagiri and Jalgaon districts of Maharashtra; Palakkad and Pathanamthitta districts of Kerala; and Bhopal and Shivpuri districts of Madhya Pradesh. Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar has said that two cases of the Delta Plus variant have been found in the state, one in a sample from Mysuru district and one in a sample from Tamil Nadu. According to reports, there may be cases of Delta Plus [named B.1.617.2.1/ (AY.1)] in Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, and Jammu as well.
The new Delta Plus variant has been formed due to a mutation in the Delta or B.1.617.2 variant, first identified in India and one of the drivers of the deadly second wave. Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortia (INSACOG), a consortium of 28 laboratories for genome sequencing, has said that the Delta Plus variant has increased transmissibility, stronger binding to receptors of lung cells and a potential reduction in monoclonal antibody response. Though there is no indication yet of the severity of the disease due to the new variant, Delta Plus has been found to be resistant to the monoclonal antibody cocktail treatment for COVID-19 recently authorised in India.
There are three classifications of SARS-CoV-2 variants: Variant of Interest, Variant of Concern, and Variant of High Consequence. According to the World Health Organisation, a Variant of Concern is one which shows an increase in transmissibility or detrimental change in COVID-19 epidemiology, an increase in virulence or change in clinical disease presentation; or a decrease in the effectiveness of public health and social measures or available diagnostics, vaccines, and therapeutics.
Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Tuesday said that the Health Ministry has released an advisory on the kind of public health response that Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala should initiate to address this issue which "presently looks fairly small in terms of number but we would not want this to assume significant proportions." The states' chief secretaries have been advised to take up immediate containment measures in the districts and clusters – including preventing crowds and intermingling of people and ensure widespread testing, prompt tracing as well as vaccine coverage on a priority basis, the Health Ministry has said. They have also been advised to ensure that adequate samples of positive persons are promptly sent to the designated laboratories of INSACOG so that clinical epidemiological correlations can be made for further guidance to be provided to the states.
“Currently, the number of such Delta plus variants in India are only few but the distribution or detection in various states during past two+ months indicate that the B.1.617.2.1 (AY.1) is already present in some states and states may need to enhance their public health response by focusing on surveillance, enhanced testing, quick contact-tracing and priority vaccination in defined geographies where AY.1 (Delta Plus) has been detected,” INSACOG said in a statement on Wednesday.
Outside of India, Delta Plus is currently prevalent in nine countries across the world — in the United States, United Kingdom, Portugal, Switzerland, Japan, Poland, Nepal, China and Russia.