22 cases of Delta Plus strain found in India, says gov't - AA

Some 22 cases of the Delta Plus variant have been found in India, informed the government on Tuesday.

The Delta Plus variant has been formed due to a mutation of the Delta strain or B.1.617.2 variant, which was first found in India and was believed to be the reason for the deadly second wave in the country.

Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan in a media conference said: “22 cases of Delta Plus variant have been found in Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh in the country. It has been kept in Variant of interest category.”

“Based on the recent findings of INSACOG (Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortia), the Health Ministry has alerted and advised Maharashtra, Kerala, and Madhya Pradesh regarding the Delta Plus variant of COVID19 found in these States,” said a statement by the Health Ministry.