Experts say more than the new coronavirus variant(s), faulty swab sample collection by untrained staff and wrong timing of testing are likely to be the main reasons.
April 16, 2021
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Genome sequencing data shared by Indian Genomic Consortium multiple times with States from March 26 onwards The RT-PCR tests used in India do not miss the UK, Brazil, South Africa or the Double Mutant variants of the Covid-19 virus as they target more than two genes, the Health Ministry said on Friday. Sensitivity and specificity of the RT-PCR tests remain the same as earlier, it added.
The detection of these mutations does not change the management strategy, which is to test, track, trace and treat. The use of masks remains the most important shield to prevent the spread of Covid-19, the Ministry added.
Pitfalls of vaccine nationalism
Workers unload a pickup van that carries Oxford-Astrazeneca Covid-19 vaccines which arrived from India as a gift to Bangladesh, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, January 21, 2021. Photo: Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters
In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic brought the world literally to a standstill, with infections in the millions and deaths of more than 1.8 million people. But then, another one million died in the next three months. The number of Covid-19 deaths now stands at 2,887,039 as of April 7, 2021, and the number keeps increasing every day.
This, of course, may not be a very high figure compared to some other pandemics, like the Black Death or the Spanish Flu. The former killed as many as 225 million people in four years in 1347-1351, while the latter killed 50 million people in 2 years in 1918-1919. In recent times, the Swine Flu killed between 151,700-575,400 people in 2009-2010, while the Ebola virus killed only 11,300 people in 2014-2016. The Asian Flu (H