New Covid Arcturus variant causing surge of coronavirus cases in India detected in UK
A new Covid variant which has been the 'driving force' of new cases in India has been found in the UK. Dubbed Arcturus but also known as XBB.1.16, it is a strain of the Omicron subvariant of the virus.
In India's southern state of Kerela, Health Minister Veena George reintroduced masks for the elderly, pregnant women, and those with underlying conditions. This week, case numbers throughout India rose by 3,122 in a single day, but India's severe reaction has been partly informed by a devastating second wave the country suffered - and a desire from politicians to avoid a repeat.
XBB.1.16 was first documented on January 23 this year, and was designated a variant under monitoring by March 22. In publicly available documents, the UKHSA said that it had been detected in the UK in the past 12 weeks. Ryan Gregory, a biology professor at the University of Guleph in Canada called Arcturus' rise in India "concerning".
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