Coronavirus BF.7 variant poses no threat to India: Senior scientist Rakesh Mishra
According to TIGS Director Rakesh Mishra, China has seen an unprecedented increase in COVID-19 cases as the country has not experienced the various waves of infection that India has. Additionally, Mishra said that the Chinese population is not exposed to natural infection and that they did not use the time to vaccinate elderly people.
FollowA prominent scientist, to allay concerns about the BF.7 coronavirus variant, on Friday, December 23, 2022, said that it's a sub-variant of the Omicron strain and that India should not be worried about its impact on the population.
While talking to PTI, Bangalore's Tata Institute for Genetics and Society (TIGS), Director Rakesh Mishra cautioned that wearing face masks and avoiding unnecessary crowds is always recommended.
According to the former director of the CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, China has seen an unprecedented increase in COVID-19 cases as the neighbouring country has not experienced the various waves of infection that India has.
Mishra said, "This is an Omicron subvariant. Except for a few minor differences, the main features will be similar to Omicron. Most of us have experienced the Omicron wave. So we don't have to be worried. It is essentially the same virus."
The scientist said that China is experiencing a surge in the infection due to its 'zero-covid policy' in which authorities block apartment buildings or even cordon off a neighbourhood once a resident tests positive, causing great inconvenience to the people.
Additionally, Mishra said that the Chinese population is not exposed to natural infection and that they did not use the time to vaccinate elderly people.
On the situation in China, the expert said, "So what's happening to those guys is that as they haven't been vaccinated, their symptoms are severe. Younger people still don't have a problem. However, the infection rapidly spreads among elderly people who have not been vaccinated."
According to him, most Indians have developed hybrid immunity, which means immunity development via vaccine and natural infection, protecting them from various COVID-19 variants.
Furthermore, the scientist said that the existing vaccines in India are good for preventing or thwarting different Omicron variants, as several studies show that even during the large wave of Omicron earlier this year, India did not see many hospitalisations.
Given the sudden increase in cases in Japan, the United States of America, the Republic of Korea, Brazil, and China, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan wrote a letter to all states and Union territories on December 20, 2022.
He requested that samples of all positive cases be sent daily to the designated INSACOG (Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortium) genome sequencing laboratories that are mapped to states and UTs.
(With inputs from PTI)
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