Goa reported its first case of the Omicron variant of the Covid-19 virus after an eight-year-old boy who arrived in the state from the UK on December 17 was found to be positive with the virus
“8-year-old boy who had travelled from the UK on 17th December has tested positive for Omicron Virus as confirmed by NIV Pune. We will take steps as per the protocol of the Government of India, necessary stringent measures will be taken by the government of Goa in public interest based on the advice given by the expert committee,” Health Minister Vishwajit Rane announced via Twitter.
The Goa government has announced plans to set up its own genome sequencing lab in order to be able to quickly test for the presence of the faster spreading variant, but the lab will take at least a month to set up.
Goa has introduced mandatory testing on arrival of all passengers arriving from high-risk countries that includes the UK. Those found positive are then isolated while they await the results of the genome sequencing of their samples that are currently being sent to the laboratories of the National Institute of Virology at Pune.
