Delta Plus cases in Haryana, Gujarat, Rajasthan: Here's what govts are doing

The Centre has advised states to take up immediate containment measures in the districts and clusters where Delta Plus cases are found.

At least four new cases of the Delta Plus variant of the coronavirus were reported from Haryana, Gujarat and Punjab over the weekend prompting at least one state government to declare containment zones and ramp up testings.

More than 50 cases of Delta Plus variant of the coronavirus have been reported across 11 states. (File Photo)

In Haryana's Faridabad, where a 25-year-old man tested positive for the Delta Plus variant, authorities ordered screening and testing in the entire area around the ESI Hospital. They also created a containment zone there and a micro-containment zone in the man's neighbourhood to prevent its spread.

Haryana health minister Anil Vij said on Saturday said that the state government is fully prepared to handle the situation. Vij also said that the state has already acted on the Centre's advice and asked officials to create a containment zone and conduct testing on a large scale. "We have given orders that 100 per cent of the contacts of the person be tested and genome sequencing is done," he added.

The Centre has advised states to take up immediate containment measures in the districts and clusters as identified by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genome Sequencing Consortia (INSACOG), prevent crowds, widespread and prompt tracing as well as vaccine coverage on priority.

In Rajasthan, where a woman in Bikaner was found infected with the new variant, health minister Raghu Sharma said contact tracing has been started in the city on a large scale and micro containment zones created to curb its spread.

Authorities in Gujarat's Surat said that a case of Delta Plus variant was confirmed in a person who tested positive for Covid-19 on April 1 and that the patient had recovered in home isolation, according to news agency ANI.

The news agency also said the first case of Delta Plus variant was also detected in Chandigarh and samples of four high-risk family contacts, who tested positive for the infection in May, have been sent to the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Saturday.

"Out of the results received, a variant of concern (VOC) has been detected in 35 samples. One Alpha variant (B.1.1.1.7), 33 Delta variant (B.1.617.2) and one Delta Plus variant (AY.1) have been reported in the samples sent for WGS,” the statement said, according to ANI.

Another case of Delta Plus variant was also reported from Ludhiana after a 62-year-old man tested positive on June 15. "His situation is stable. All 198 of his contacts were tested negative," deputy commissioner VK Sharma said.

More than 50 cases of Delta Plus variant of the coronaviruhave been reported across 11 states--Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Gujarat, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Haryana--and Jammu in India. The government has Delta Plus variant is a "variant of concern" and has increased transmissibility, stronger binding to lung cells and potential reduction in monoclonal antibody response.