India administered zero Covid vaccinations on Dec 19 since drive began, though cases are surging
Summary
Notably, there were three days when the MoHFW failed to update the daily vaccination number on the website and kept the daily number unchanged, but this was not a case of “0” vaccinations which is now being seen on the website. Incidentally, this is two days after the Health Ministry alerted states about the new variant in India, which WHO has classified as a ‘variant of interest’ yesterday.
Within nine days, the number of active Covid cases in India exhibited a more than twofold increase, rising from 938 on December 11 to 1,970 on December 19. The government lab forum, Insacog, detected 19 instances of JN.1, a subvariant of Omicron, with Maharashtra reporting one case and Goa 18, reported Times of India.
Interestingly, for the first time since the COVID-19 vaccination drive began on January 16, 2021, zero vaccinations were administered in India on December 19, 2023.
Notably, there were three days when the MoHFW didn’t update the daily vaccination number on the website and left the daily number unchanged, but this was not a case of “0” vaccination, which is now being shown on the website.
Incidentally, this is two days after the Health Ministry alerted states about the new variant in India and WHO classified it as a ‘variant of interest’ yesterday.
“Due to its rapidly increasing spread, WHO is classifying the variant JN.1 as a separate variant of interest (VOI) from the parent lineage BA.2.86,” said a statement from the inter-government body. It was previously considered to be a VOI as a part of Pirola sub-lineages.
The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies a variant as a Variant of Interest (VOI) when it demonstrates a growth advantage compared to other circulating variants. This growth advantage implies that its proportion rises in tandem with an increase in the overall number of cases.
Additionally, a variant can attain VOI status if it is anticipated or confirmed to alter characteristics such as transmissibility, virulence, evasion of antibodies, or susceptibility to therapies and diagnostics.
The JN.1 sub-variant — first identified in Luxembourg and since spread to several countries — is a descendant of the Pirola variant (BA.2.86).
According to sources, it contains a significant number of unique mutations, particularly in the spike protein, that may contribute to increased infectivity and immune evasion.
However, initial data suggests that updated vaccines and treatments will still offer protection against JN.1 sub-strain, the source stated. This sub-variant’s resemblance to earlier sub-strains with distinct spike proteins is also noteworthy.
Most of the changes in the JN.1 sub-variant are found in the spike protein, which likely correlates to increases in infectivity and immune evasion.
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