The coronavirus variant first found in India, or the Delta variant is behind the second surge of Covid-19 in the country, a government study has found.
The Delta variant or the B.1.617.2 strain - is "more infectious" than the Alpha variant first detected in Kent, UK, says the study by the Indian SARS COV2 Genomic Consortia and the National Centre for Disease Control.

The Delta variant is, in fact, 50 per cent more contagious than the Alpha strain, the study says.

The Delta variant is present in all states, but has infected most in Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Odisha and Telangana, which were the worst hit in the second surge.

The role of the Delta variant in breakthrough infections or Covid infections after vaccination has also been found to be big. There are no such cases of infection after vaccination when it comes to the Alpha variant. But the study says the role of the Delta variant in more deaths or severity of cases is not proved yet.