India has confirmed its first case of a deadlier strain of mpox, which has raised alarm among health officials around the world over the rapid pace of its spread.

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala health department has announced plans to issue updated Mpox prevention and treatment guidelines, following the confirmation of the country's first case of a new strain in the state on Monday.

India has reported its first case of the more severe Clade Ib strain of mpox, raising global concerns due to the strain’s rapid spread. The case was detected in a 38-year-old man in Kerala who had traveled from Dubai.

Mpox is caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV), a member of the Orthopoxvirus genus, said Dr Jha. “Clade 1b refers to a genetic variant within the Central African (Congo Basin) clade, which is typically associated with more severe symptoms than the West African clade,” said Dr Jha.

India on Monday reported the first case of Mpox Clade 1 strain in Kerala. This is the same strain the prompted WHO to declare mpox as a public health emergency. Reports suggest that nearly 30,000 suspected mpox cases have been reported in Africa so far this year.

The Pinarayi Vijayan government in Kerala said it will release revised guidelines for the prevention and treatment of Mpox after the state reported the first confirmed case of the new strain Clade 1b

Although the minister, in her statement, did not mention that the first confirmed case of the Mpox strain in India was found in a patient from Kerala, she announced that revised guidelines for the prevention and effective treatment of Mpox would soon be released in the state.

India confirms the first case of mpox virus pertaining to the new Clade 1B variant which has been termed far more deadlier than Clade 1 infections.

The Mpox case recorded in Kerala last week has been confirmed to be from the fast-spreading clade 1 variant of the infection, reported Reuters on Monday, quoting health ministry spokesperson Manisha Verma. This is India’s first case of the Clade 1 variant of Mpox.

India said on Monday that an mpox case involving a man in the southern state of Kerala was from the fast-spreading clade 1b variety, marking South Asia's first recorded case from the new strain.

The virus with the new strain has been detected in a man from Kerala state India has reported its first case with the new mpox strain that has triggered a public health emergency alert by the World Health Organization (WHO),