Over 88% of 92 samples from Delhi, for which genome sequencing was done in June, had the Delta variant of COVID-19. In May, out of 745 samples, 83.4% were found to have the Delta variant, which was first found in India, according to Delhi government data shared with The Hindu .
The Delta variant became dominant in April (55% of 1,967 samples) when the city witnessed a deadly second wave and the daily new cases were reported as high as 28,000.
Also, the percentage of Alpha variant of the virus, first found in the U.K. and a dominant strain in the city earlier, fell from 47.4% in March to just 3.3% in June.
‘No Delta Plus variant’
“The Delta variant is the dominant strain of the virus in Delhi at this moment. It has seen a steady rise in the past few months. Also, till now, there is no Delta Plus variant of the virus reported here,” a Delhi government official said. Results of more samples from June are awaited, the official said.
The analysis is based on genome sequencing of COVID-19 positive blood samples from Delhi by the National Centre for Disease Control.
“The data show that the second wave in Delhi was in a way due to the Delta variant. This variant is highly infectious and that’s why Delhi registered a sudden spike in cases,” said Jugal Kishore, head of Community Medicine Department, Safdarjung Hospital. He said a similar trend was observed in several other States as well.
“Now the percentage of Delta variant may fall and another variant could become dominant. That is what happens during pandemics,” Dr. Kishore said.
