Drills test India’s COVID 19 Preparedness

Subject: Science and technology

Section: Biotechnology

Concept :

India began a two-day COVID 19 preparedness drill , amid the continuing surge in cases.
A senior Health Ministry official said the drill was aimed at reviewing and ensuring proper arrangements for testing and treatment of patients.
Drills were conducted at all major government and private hospitals across Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, and Mumbai.
The Ministry said the spike in cases witnessed recently could be attributed to the newly emerged recombinant coronavirus variant XBB.1.16.

SARS-CoV-2 XBB.1.16 Lineage

An Omicron variant of the coronavirus namely XBB.1.16, which is a recombinant virus of Omicron has been attributed to a recent spike in covid cases in India.

How is XBB.1.16 Lineage Cause for Concern?

The XBB.1.16 variant has been detected in around 14 countries across the world and the earliest sequence of this lineage originated in a viral genome detected in NewYork.
The 1.16 lineage evolved from the XBB lineage and is a recombinant lineage of the SARS-COV2 virus.
XBB is an Omicron sublineage and it is currently the most prevalent one among the Omicron variants.
The 1.16 lineage also has various mutations and initial data suggest that this variant has a superior advantage when compared with other SARS-CoV-2 lineages including XBB.1.5 lineage.
In the middle of an uptick in seasonal influenza H3N2 cases, there is also a spike in COVID-19 cases in March 2023 despite a low number of tests conducted.
The total number of cases increased to 6000 in India and XBB.1.16 lineage is considered to be the reason behind the spike in cases.
Genomic surveillance data also reveals that XBB.1.16 accounts for more than 30% of all sequenced genomes in march 2023 and its share of infection is increasing.
Preliminary data suggest that there is no difference in clinical severity between XBB.1.16 and other Omicron variants, but there is a chance of a higher risk of reinfection with XBB.1.16 lineage due to its fast-growing ability.
Hence it is important to monitor the spread of this XBB.1.16 lineage if the Covid-19 cases continue to increase.