2020 began with India declaring victory against the novel coronavirus – even as experts warned against it. The bubble burst pretty quick...
2020 began with India declaring victory against the novel coronavirus – even as experts warned against it.
The bubble burst pretty quickly.
Early warnings from Vidarbha
In February, Maharashtra’s eastern region of Vidarbha saw the virus raging again, this time with a ferocity not seen earlier. Genome sequencing of the infected blood samples by researchers found the E484K mutation in a sample from Amravati and the N440K mutation another from Amravati, the Indian Express reported on February 18.
The E484K mutation, previously seen in the fast-spreading Brazilian and South African variants, makes the virus highly transmissible. The N440K mutation, found earlier in samples from Andhra Pradesh, helps the virus evade the body’s immune response. In other words, antibodies induced as a result of vaccination or an old infection become ineffective to counter the virus as should be the case under normal circumstances. Each time a virus mutates, it gives rise to a new variant. Not all variants are a matter of concern. But the variant in Maharashtra appeared to be.
“At that time, we flagged [to the Centre] that it was a rapidly spreading variant affecting a less exposed population,” said Shashank Joshi, a doctor who is part of the Maharashtra Covid-19 task force.
Confusing messaging
But what followed after that was a slew of conflicting...
