Delta+ has been lurking in Maharashtra for over 2 months now
TNN | Jun 23, 2021, 01.39 PM IST
MUMBAI: A man in his late 70s, a milk dealer’s wife, an electrician who attended a big wedding, two jewellers who travelled to Surat and a teacher in his mid-50s are among the 21 people who were infected by the Delta-plus variant of Sars-Cov-2 in Maharashtra. Some of these cases were detected as early as April but their genome sequencing results arrived only last week.
The two Delta-plus cases in Mumbai had tested positive as early as April 5 and April 15, suggesting that the variant has been lurking in the city for over two months. One is a Thane resident, while the other is a 78-year-old man. Most of those affected, including the Mumbai resident, were not vaccinated.
Civic officials said the senior citizen recovered well and has no complaints at present. A family member, who too had tested positive, has recovered too. “We will keep an eye on them for any developments, but there is nothing much to do since they had Covid nearly two-and-half months ago,” said Suresh Kakani, additional municipal commissioner.
Delta-plus cases were found in six districts of Maharashtra, with the most detected in Ratnagiri (9) and Jalgaon (7). Although most had Covid in May, some districts have begun fresh surveillance near their residences. Jalgaon, for instance, held a camp on June 12 and 13 where 165 people were tested. Two were positive but asymptomatic. Sindhudurg, with one Delta-plus case, will test the entire residential complex of six buildings where the individual resides.
All seven Jalgaon patients hail from a single village, Vichkheda, with a population of 1,200. These individuals had tested positive during an RT-PCR camp held on May 5. Their samples were sent to the Government Medical College, Jalgaon, and subsequently to Pune for genome analysis.
An electrician in his 60s, who tested positive, had attended a wedding at Chalisgaon. A milk distributor’s wife was also affected but not her husband. Two people had travelled to Surat for jewellery work while one had a travel history to Thane, said Dr D S Potode, assistant district health officer. “It’s important to note that all remained asymptomatic and we didn’t see any unusual rise in transmission there,” he said.
In Sindhudurg, a teacher is among those affected. District officials said he had tested positive on May 22 and has since recovered. In this case, though, all three high-risk contacts had also contracted Covid. But all recovered at home without complications, said Dr Mahesh Khalipe, adding that they would be testing 225 residents, including the family again.
State surveillance officer Dr Pradeep Awate said they are gathering information about these cases, including symptoms, the severity of disease and vaccination status. There will also be surveillance of influenza-like illnesses in the vicinity.
The two Delta-plus cases in Mumbai had tested positive as early as April 5 and April 15, suggesting that the variant has been lurking in the city for over two months. One is a Thane resident, while the other is a 78-year-old man. Most of those affected, including the Mumbai resident, were not vaccinated.
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Delta-plus cases were found in six districts of Maharashtra, with the most detected in Ratnagiri (9) and Jalgaon (7). Although most had Covid in May, some districts have begun fresh surveillance near their residences. Jalgaon, for instance, held a camp on June 12 and 13 where 165 people were tested. Two were positive but asymptomatic. Sindhudurg, with one Delta-plus case, will test the entire residential complex of six buildings where the individual resides.
All seven Jalgaon patients hail from a single village, Vichkheda, with a population of 1,200. These individuals had tested positive during an RT-PCR camp held on May 5. Their samples were sent to the Government Medical College, Jalgaon, and subsequently to Pune for genome analysis.
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An electrician in his 60s, who tested positive, had attended a wedding at Chalisgaon. A milk distributor’s wife was also affected but not her husband. Two people had travelled to Surat for jewellery work while one had a travel history to Thane, said Dr D S Potode, assistant district health officer. “It’s important to note that all remained asymptomatic and we didn’t see any unusual rise in transmission there,” he said.
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In Sindhudurg, a teacher is among those affected. District officials said he had tested positive on May 22 and has since recovered. In this case, though, all three high-risk contacts had also contracted Covid. But all recovered at home without complications, said Dr Mahesh Khalipe, adding that they would be testing 225 residents, including the family again.
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State surveillance officer Dr Pradeep Awate said they are gathering information about these cases, including symptoms, the severity of disease and vaccination status. There will also be surveillance of influenza-like illnesses in the vicinity.