UNITED NATIONS: The B-1617 Covid variant, first identified in India, has been classified as a “variant of concern” at the global level by the WHO.
Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, Covid-19 technical lead at the WHO, said the variant had demonstrated increased transmissibility in some preliminary studies.
“But we need much more information… so we need more targeted sequencing to be done, and to be shared in India and elsewhere so that we know how much of this virus is circulating,” she said.