The B.1.617 strain was reclassified as a 'variant of concern' by the World Health Organization, indicating it has the 'highest public health implications.'
The World Health Organization named the B.1.617 strain as one of the "variants of concern" on Monday.
Health workers wearing personal protective equipment attend to Covid-19 patients inside a banquet hall temporarily converted into a Covid care center in New Delhi on May 7, 2021.India is grappling with a devastating second wave of coronavirus that's far more fatal than the first — and scientists say the surge could be partially due to mutating strains.World Health Organization just reclassified the B.1.
shows. Experts say the numbers are likely severely underreported as many never make it to the hospitals which have run out of beds and oxygen.The earliest samples of the B.1.617 were detected in India in October, and authorities announced in March this year that the variant had become more common in the state of Maharashtra.