That's a badge India could do without. Or any country for that matter. Even after a huge ruckus over the coronavirus variants being identified with the country of origin, that hasn't stopped certain sections of the media from terming one of the latest coronavirus strains as 'Indian variant'. The latest to hit the virus pool in the USA is a strain that first originated in India. Found in Northern California, the strain was first detected last month by health officials in India.
Of the Indian variant, found in California
On Saturday, researchers at Stanford University confirmed having found in California at least one case of the variant that first originated in India. The variant was found in a patient from the San Francisco Bay Area and it reportedly has two mutations. Through genome sequencing, the Stanford Virology Lab identified and confirmed one case of an emerging that first originated in India, spokesperson for Stanford Healthcare, Lisa Kim said. Officially the variant is being dubbed as the "double mutant" because of its characteristic property of carrying two mutations in the virus that helps it latch itself onto cells.
Meanwhile, India is currently battling the second wave of infection with cases that had been decreasing since September, once again showing a steep surge.
But wait, why call it the Indian variant?
But first, why call it 'Indian'? A few netizens simply pinned down the term as Asian hate. Many referred back to the rule of not calling the virus based on its geographical origins. "So it's not acceptable to call it the original Wuhan Virus, but the variants can have a name?" vented an angry user.
While others were okay at the term 'Indian variant of the Wuhan virus' as long it followed one rule for all. "If naming the variant after the country where it first originated is acceptable, then why not call the virus Chinese where it first originated," wrote another echoing the sentiments of many.
