Chennai: A day after a BA.4 Omicron subvariant case was reported in India from Hyderabad, a second such case has been detected in Tamil Nadu on Saturday.
Tamil Nadu Health minister Ma Subramanian confirmed the development, stating that the person infected by the variant is a resident of Chengalpattu district, 30 kilometres from Chennai.
Contact tracing of the first BA.4 case has been started, reported ANI. Those who came in contact with a person who travelled to Hyderabad from South Africa are being ascertained.
His sample was collected on May 9, and the report came 11 days later. He was asymptomatic.
Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) is expected to issue a bulletin on the two cases on May 23.
BA.4 variant was first detected in South Africa on January 10, 2022.
There is no indication yet that those who contract the BA.4 or BA.5 subvariants show new symptoms or are severely affected. However, these new variants may be able to evade the immune system.
