The new Covid variant EG.5.1 or Eris, which is behind the rising number of Covid cases in the UK, was detected in Maharashtra, India, back in May, Dr Rajesh Karyakarte, Maharashtra’s coordinator for genome sequencing and a senior scientist with Pune’s BJ Medical College, told the Times of India.
“EG.5.1 was detected in Maharashtra in May. As two months have passed after its detection and no significant surge in Covid in June and July, this sub-variant has not seemed to make an impact. XBB.1.16 and XBB.2.3 are still dominating,” he said.
Currently, 1 out of 10 Covid cases in the UK are because of this new strain, but this new variant has not been listed as a variant of concern. This strain has been contributing to the hospitalisation of mostly elderlies in the UK. The variant was officially recognised on July 31 after a surge in Covid infections caused by this sub-variant.
“EG.5.1 was first raised as a signal in monitoring on July 3, 2023, as part of horizon scanning due to increasing reports internationally, particularly in Asia,” the UK Health Security Agency said.
"As seasons are changing and Covid virus continues to spread, newer variants continue to emerge worldwide. One of the recent variants that have been identified is the Eris variant which has been recognised to be come out of the UK, where it has been known to cause 1 in 10 of the Covid cases. This is showing an increase in number of cases in UK, with somewhat higher levels of hospitalisation for people who are seniors even if they are vaccinated. So, it is something which we need to keep an eye on. This is strain of the Omicron variant, which itself was significantly mutated compared to the original Covid-19 virus that came in 2019," Dr Pavithra Venkatagopalan, corona-virologist and Covid awareness specialist at Rotary Club of Madras NextGen told Hindustan Times.
After a long silent period in the country, Maharashtra is also experiencing a slow rise in Covid cases. Based on the state health department data, the number of active cases increased from 70 at the end of July to 115 on August 6. The case count in the state on Monday was 109.
India logged 54 new coronavirus infections while the active cases were recorded at 1,574, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday.
Dr Venkatagopalan also said that people need to take booster shots if they haven't taken it already and get tested in case of any symptoms to contain the spread of infection.
"We have to keep an eye on the spread of this variant. However, treatment and preventive measures continue to be the same. Unvaccinated people should get vaccinated as soon as they are eligible. Booster shots have to be taken if not done so far. If people are known to be showing symptoms, they need to be isolated, get tested if needed. More importantly, now that the schools have started in full swing, the wave will see an increase in the number of cases. But whether this will result in hospitalisation of the younger population, we do not know," she added.