Assam woman doctor infected by Alpha, Delta variants of Covid-19; first such case in India

A woman doctor in eastern Assam's Dibrugarh district has been infected by both 'Alpha' and 'Delta' variants of SARS-CoV-2 with experts calling it the first such case in the country.

Officials of the Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) of the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) situated at Dibrugarh told reporters in Assam that the woman doctor was fully vaccinated and she had tested positive a month after taking the second dose. She has mild symptoms and did not require hospitalisation.

"This is perhaps the first such case in India. We are in the process of reporting and documenting the case," Biswajyoti Barkakoty of ICMR-RMRC said.

Read | Covid-19 Wrap-up: Positivity rate dips but norms violation a cause of concern

Doctors said the double infection could be due to the contraction of the virus from two persons infected with the two variants. Her husband was also infected with 'Alpha' variant of Covid-19.

Such a case was first reported in Britain in March last year and another in Brazil.

Assam still has over 20,000 active Covid-19 cases and the state is reporting nearly 2,000 new cases daily for more than two weeks. Dibrugarh is among the seven districts in Assam where the number of cases is still high and containment measures are in force for more than two weeks now.