A new variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes COVID-19, has been detected in South Africa and many other countries globally which could be more transmissible and evade protection provided by vaccines, according to a study. The variant was identified by scientists from the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) along with the KwaZulu-Natal Research and Sequencing Platform (KRISP) in South Africa.

The study found consistent increases in the number of C.1.2 genomes in South Africa each month, rising from 0.2 per cent of genomes sequenced in May to 1.6 per cent in June and then to 2 per cent in July. “This is similar to the increases seen with the Beta and Delta variants in the country during early detection,” the authors of the study said. According to the study, C.1.2 lineage has a mutation rate of about 41.8 mutations per year, which is about twice as fast as the current global mutation rate of the other variants.

So far it has been found by authorities in China, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mauritius, England, New Zealand, Portugal and Switzerland.

In India, if the virus mutates beyond a certain point, the current vaccines may show lower efficacy or may not provide protection at all. The only way to prevent mutation is by accelerating vaccination and inducing herd immunity, which seems unlikely at this point due to vaccine inequity around the world.

So practice basic hygiene, continue to wear a tight-fitting mask even if you’re fully vaccinated because highly infectious variants don’t take too long to spread, especially in India’s. We all have seen the devastating second wave of Covid earlier this year caused by the Delta variant.