Centre says no case of COVID-19 Delta Plus variant in Tripura

The Union Health Ministry informed that there is no case of Delta Plus variant of COVID-19 has been reported from sample sequencing in Tripura. A total of 152 samples were sent from Tripura to the National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG) Kalyani for Whole Genome Sequence.

New Delhi: No case of Delta Plus variant of COVID-19 has been reported from sample sequencing in Tripura, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Sunday. This comes as there were some reports regarding rising cases of Delta Plus variants in Tripura. In this regard, the government has informed that 152 samples were sent from Tripura to the National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG) Kalyani for Whole Genome Sequence(WGS). The random samples were of people who tested positive in the RT-PCR test between April and May 2021, according to an official release by the ministry. The results of the WGS done at NIBMG Kalyani revealed that 3 samples had tested positive for B.1.1.7, 11 samples had tested positive for B.1.617.1 (Kappa) and 138 samples had tested positive for B.1.617.2 (Delta).

As per the health ministry, there was no case of the Delta Plus variant reported among an aforementioned lot of sequenced samples. To curb the spread of COVID-19, the Tripura government on Saturday imposed a weekend curfew that came into effect from yesterday. While addressing a press conference yesterday, Revenue Secretary Tanushree Deb Barma said, "A weekend curfew will be imposed in Tripura starting from Saturday 12 noon to Monday 6 am with various restrictions." At present, Tripura has 4,231 active cases of COVID-19, as per the health ministry.

(ANI)