Highly transmissible Omicron BA.2 strain dominates Goa's COVID-19 numbers

With the rolling back of mask requirements and physical distancing, many people have been on a search for the new normal. But there is still reason to be cautious. Amid the rise and fall of COVID-19 cases across the country, the state observed that most cases of the notorious virus belonged to the highly transmissible Omricon BA.2 strain. With a marginal dip from Monday’s tally of 12, Goa logged in 11 fresh cases on Tuesday with 0 deaths.

With over 67 active cases, Goa’s recovery rate stood at a remarkable 98.41%. A total of 5 people recuperated from the disease yesterday, taking the cumulative tally to 2,41,618. Reportedly, both Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 strains were detected in Goa during the third wave over the past four months, but the last two months have seen only the Omicron BA.2 variant which is why the severity of cases, hospital admissions and death rate has been low.

Notably, BA.2 is 30% to 60% more transmissible than the other strains and has the ability to skyrocket in terms of the number of cases. However, fortunately, as observed, this variant is not more virulent in terms of causing more severe disease.

Reportedly, in a bid to boost early detection and identification of COVID-19 and its strain, the Goa government has been in the process of procuring a genome sequencing machine. In the absence of a genome sequencing facility of its own, COVID-19 samples from the state are sent to the nearest facility available at National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS), Pune. In most cases, there has been a huge delay in receiving results from NCCS which further delays the treatment.