Experts said the strain has not propelled a surge in cases like Omicron, but advised strict adherence to COVID-19-appropriate behaviour.
"It is unrealistic to expect that COVID-19 pandemic can be eliminated at this stage given that community transmission is already well-established across large sections or sub-populations in the country," the report said.
Scientists associated with Indian SARS-CoV-2 Consortium on Genomics (INSACOG), the government panel that conducts research on different variants of the coronavirus, said they were surprised at noted virologist Shahid Jameel's decision to quit the group and wondered whether he was disillusioned with the government's handling of the pandemic.
The new lineage called B.1.618 is distinct from the B.1.617, also known as the 'double mutant' virus that contains two mutations, E484Q and L245R, and is believed to be behind the powerful second COVID-19 wave sweeping through India.
The percentage of patients with serious infections had halved from previous admissions.
The comments come as the country's COVID-19 caseload surpassed the one crore mark, though the number of daily cases and daily fatalities have been continuously coming down.
The interim findings of the trial in which the four drugs were tested in 405 hospitals across 30 countries, covering 11,266 adults, were released on 'medRxiv', a preprint server, on Thursday. The findings are under review for publication in a medical journal.
'Better to prevent than to wait for evidence. Protection delayed can also mean protection denied'
Epidemiologists point out that if there is no second wave, it means that the number of infected has surpassed the uninfected, reports Ruchika Chitravanshi.
'...If people follow the lockdown well.'
The global heath body had earlier suspended the hydroxychloroquine arm of the clinical trials of experimental COVID-19 drugs over safety concerns.
'On January 17, we had our first meeting with the Cabinet secretary.' 'Different secretaries belonging to different departments attended it.' 'It was only two weeks when China had said there is a new disease.' 'So, we gave the quickest response.'
'If it is airborne -- and we don't know till what distance it can be airborne -- then the mask becomes a definite.' 'Just social distance is not enough.' 'You need a mask in addition to social distance.'
In its daily briefing, the government also reported Goa is now free of coronavirus.
Joint Secretary in the Health Ministry Lav Agarwal claimed that India has been doing better than many other countries on the outcome ratio, which is the number of recoveries from coronavirus infection versus the number of deaths.
'Don't panic. Believe in yourself.' 'This is a preventable illness. Only you can prevent it.'
The Chinese health authorities announced on Wednesday that 5,974 confirmed cases of pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus had been reported in 31 provincial-level regions by the end of Tuesday.
The joint secretary also said a high-level task force to work on frontiers of science related to vaccines and drug testing was formed on Sunday.
'We need to have the courage to take a rational look at known facts and act accordingly,' advises Mohan Guruswamy.
'Two years ago, had I been given even a tiny hint that my genes were tipping the scale for the development of a disease that would lock me into my body, unable to move or breath normally on my own, I would have been sad, and probably mad.' 'So now I'm running as fast as I can -- from my wheelchair.' P Rajendran on the amazing but brief life of Rahul Desikan, medical pioneer.
'All the vaccines that are available in most countries, right now, are all highly effective and safe.'
'Without it, it is going to be much, much, much, much worse.' 'In the meantime, we really need to work on a sort of war footing, given that it is a natural disaster, provide relief, provide essentials, till we get biological herd immunity, we need to get economic immunity, and also social immunity.'
The world had lost an opportunity to know long-term toxic effects of Methyl Isocyanate which had leaked from the Union Carbide factory on the night of December 2, 1984, because government research agencies have lost track of a bulk of survivors, says Dinesh C Sharma.
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