The government is keeping a close watch on all SARS-CoV-2 virus strains circulating in the country in order to identify any changes in the virus that could increase the severity of covid-19, the disease caused by it.
The apex biomedical research agency Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) recently decoded the virus genome obtained from local patients and evacuees from abroad. “World over, the virus has changed less than 1%, but it is imperative to do continuous monitoring of the strains, to understand the changes of nucleotides in the SARS-CoV-2 strains circulating in various states of India to study its variation in India," said a senior official in ICMR, adding that after the lockdown is lifted, the samples will be collected and