DELHI: The Delta variant of COVID-19 was the main reason behind the escalation of the pandemic in India during the second wave, said a study conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The Delta variant has a specifically higher transmissibility rate than the original variant of the virus. ICMR said that over 80 per cent of the cases during the second wave were caused by the Delta variant.
The study found out that the Delta variant could infect even those individuals who had been vaccinated against COVID-19. The study, conducted by the National Institute of Virology, did genome analysis of over 670 people who were infected even after taking the vaccine. The study found a correlation between the vaccine and the reduction in hospital admissions. Among individuals participating in the study, the most consistent symptoms were fever, body ache, cough, sore throat, nausea, and headache. The samples of the study were collected from 17 states including Maharashtra, Kerala, Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Manipur, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Chandigarh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Puducherry, New Delhi, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Jharkhand.