Mysterious Case of Indian COVID Variant Forces Curbs in Sydney

Sydney- Sydney forces Australian authorities to impose curbs related to social distancing on Thursday, as they hastily attempt to find the missing transmission links in a mysterious COVID-19 case linked to the Indian variant of the virus. 

The restrictions are also extended to Sydney's neighboring regions of Wollongong, the Central Coast, and Blue Mountains. 

Reckoning that the huge gathering of people over the weekend on the occasion of the annual mother's day celebration could potentially add to the difficulty for officials to trace the missing link of the Indian COVID-19 variant, the authorities limited household gatherings to 20 guests and restricted 'aged care facility' visitors to two per resident.  Read more

In the country's biggest metropolitan area where about 5.3 million people reside, face masks have been made mandatory on public transport and at indoor venues. The restriction imposed will be in effect from 5 p.m. local time on Thursday and is scheduled to last until Monday morning. 

"We believe this is a proportionate response to the risk we have ahead of us," NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian told reporters. 

The Indian COVID-19 variant was detected from a 50-year-old man who passed the infection onto his spouse. 

The case of the 50-year-old transmitting the virus in NSW baffled health officials given the man had no known links to high-risk jobs or people. 

After undergoing the test, it was found out that the man had contracted a variant first detected in India and after its genome sequencing linked the case to a returned traveller from the United States although there is no clear path for the transmission of the infection between the two, NSW Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant said on Thursday. 

"We can't find any direct link between our case, so what we're concerned about is there is another person that is as yet unidentified that infected our case," Mr Chant said.

This appeared to be the first time that an Indian origin COVID-19 variant had been transmitted locally in Australia. 

As per official reports, the infected man showed a higher viral load compared to other infected patients which increase the likelihood of the man further spreading the infection. Read more

The authorities have urged the people living in the inner west of Sydney to get themselves tested if they show any mild flu symptoms as COVID-19 components were detected in the sewerage network used by several suburbs.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Australia recorded 29,865 COVID-19 cases and over 910 COVID-induced fatalities. 

Australia, which blocked all direct flights coming from COVID-affected India, including its own citizens until May 15 now is faced with the pressure to overturn its decision. 

As per reports from the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper on Thursday, at least two repatriation flights will be dispatched to India every week from the middle of this month to bring home around 9,000 Australians.

Also read- USA Reissues Level 4 Travel Advisory Urging Citizens Not to Travel to India

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