Hyderabad: The previous BRS government kept under wraps the fact that the new fast-spreading JN.1 variant of the coronavirus was discovered in the state way back in November, and did not sound the alarm even though the election campaign had begin.
This was in keeping with its practice of releasing as little information as possible about Covid-19 victims ever since the pandemic broke out three years ago.
The JN.1 cases were found November 21, making Telangana the fourth state to report the variant’s presence in the country.
The JN.1 variant, according to INSACOG (Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium) data, was first found in Tamil Nadu on November 13, in Goa on November 16, on November 18 in Kerala, and on November 21 in Telangana state.
There were no updates from the state health department or from the then Director of Public Health’s office – the nodal agency for dissemination of information about Covid prevalence — asking people to be on the alert as the JN.1 variant spreads fast, and easily between people.
Sources said that it was very possible that the BRS government feared that the news could affect the election campaigning.
The ISACOG appears to have not been furnished with the full information about the two JN.1 positive samples from Telangana state. ISACOG data makes it clear that the state health department did not even provide with information to the consortium on whether the samples were collected from male or female patients.
