Not New, It Is India-Dominant Variant: Singapore On Arvind Kejriwal Tweet

Singapore -- one of the nations most successful at curbing coronavirus -- has denied that it has any homegrown strain that's affecting children, as tweeted by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The Singapore High Commission tweeted on Tuesday, responding to Mr Kejriwal's tweet calling for a stop to air-traffic to and from Singapore.

"There is no truth in the assertion that there is a new COVID strain in Singapore. Phylogenetic testing has shown that the B.1.617.2 variant is the prevalent strain in many of the COVID cases, including in children, in recent weeks in Singapore," its High Commission in India tweeted.

The highly contagious B.1.617 variant was first detected in India and has now been found in several nations. It is said to be driving the second wave in the country that has brought the healthcare system to its knees. 

"The new form of Corona that came to Singapore is said to be extremely dangerous for children, in India it may come as a third wave. My appeal to the central government: 1. Air services with Singapore to be cancelled with immediate effect 2. Vaccine options should be worked out for children too," Mr Kejriwal had said in a Hindi tweet earlier on Tuesday.

His tweet came amid concerns over a possible third wave, which many experts said is likely to target children. The first wave has affected the elderly the most, and the younger people have been infected in the second wave, they pointed out.

Singapore reported 38 new cases of Covid-19 infection on Sunday, the highest number in more than a year.

Earlier, Singapore's Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said in a press conference that the strain, B.1.617, "appears to affect children more".

"Some of these mutations are much more virulent and they seem to attack the younger children," Education Minister Chan Chun Sing was quoted as saying by news agency AFP.