COVID-19 | Tamil Nadu reports first case of Omicron BA.4 variant
The Hindu
The 19-year-old girl from Navalur, Chengalpattu, is the first detected case of the BA.4 variant in Tamil Nadu, and the second in India
The Tamil Nadu Health and Family Welfare department on Saturday said that it had identified a COVID-19 case of BA.4 variant in the state through whole genome sequencing done at the State Public Health Laboratory.
This is the second case of BA.4 variant reported in the country. A case was reported in Telangana on May 20. However, officials here said that a confirmation on the finding was awaited from the National Centre for Disease Control.
The patient is a 19-year-old girl living in a four-member household in a gated community in Navalur in Chengalpattu district. She and her mother got themselves tested after developing flu-like symptoms. They tested positive on May 9. Their samples were subsequently sent by the health department for whole genome sequencing.
Officials said that the two of them isolated themselves at home and recovered from the symptoms within three days. The two did not have any travel history.
Both the cases were caused by the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 virus. However, while the mother had the BA.2 sub-lineage of Omicron, the daughter had the BA.4 variant. Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan visited the family on Friday and enquired about their health. Officials said that no other cases have been reported in the gated community so far.
The scientific community has expressed concern over the possibility of the BA.4 and BA.5 variants causing a rise in COVID-19 cases with the US and Europe reporting cases of these variants.
Dr. Radhakrishnan said that the identification of BA.4 variant in the state need not be a cause of immediate panic. He, however, stressed on the importance of all eligible persons getting vaccinated and the need to adhere to COVID-19 appropriate behaviour.
“We are judges and therefore, cannot act like Mughals of a bygone era ... the writ courts in the guise of doing justice cannot transcend the barriers of law,” the High Court of Karnataka observed while setting aside an order of a single judge, who in 2016 had extended the lease of a public premises allotted to a physically challenged person to 20 years contrary to 12-year period stipulated in the law.
The High Court of Karnataka on Monday declined to interfere, at present, in the investigation against a Bharatiya Janata Party worker, who is among the accused persons facing charges of circulating obscene clips, related to “morphed” images and videos clips related to Prajwal Revanna, former Hassan MP, in public domain through pen drives and other modes.
The 16th edition of Bhoomi Habba was held on June 8, at the Visthar campus. The festival drew a vibrant crowd who came together to celebrate eco-consciousness through a variety of engaging activities, creative workshops, panel discussions, interactive exhibits and performances, all centered around this year’s theme: “Save Water, Save Lives.”