The last few days have been a witness as to how we spiraled down into the apocalypse of the COVID-19 pandemic. Just when we seemed to have terminated the spread of the virus, thereby bringing the pandemic to an effective halt, there was a resurgence in the strength and virulence of the corona virus. Every time we had wanted to get the latest updates on the pandemic, the TV screen peddled blood-curdling images of disease, death and despair. Be it the instances of people frantically searching for doctors, or images of people gasping for medical oxygen, or the long queue at the crematoriums, we refused to identify our nation with this pandemonium of despondence, where the tirade of death continues unabated. The usual precautions were reinstated, medical resources were mobilized with unparalleled vigour and the government of different states opted for partial or total lockdowns.Naturally, as was the case with the previous national lockdown in which stringent conditions were pressed to cont...

RNA viruses are characterized by a higher rate of mutation than their hosts. The SARS CoV 2 is no exception. Most viral mutations have little to no impact on the virus’s infectivity. But depending on where the changes are located in the viral genome, they may affect a virus’s properties, such as transmission or severity. On an evolutionary basis, mutation contributes to viral genetic variability and fine tune the viral adaptation with the environment in a trial and error method where the fittest variant becomes triumphant. Currently, multiple variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 are circulating globally. Centre for disease control and prevention (CDC) established 3 classes for the SARS-CoV-2 variants: Variant of Interest (VOI), Variant of Concern (VOC), and Variant of High Consequence (VOHC).All VOI share a critical mutation called D614G. This mutant occurred in early phase of the pandemic in Europe and quickly became predominant implying enhanced transmission than the original v...