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.

The samples of the patient, who is undergoing treatment at a private hospital, have been sent for genomic sequencing at the National Institute of Virology in Maharashtra's Pune to ascertain whether it is the deadly Clade 1b strain or the previously known Clade IIb strain.

The first Mpox case in India this year involved a man from Haryana, with a less concerning strain. The second case, detected in Kerala, was the first instance of the more concerning clade 1b strain

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), Reuters reports. Called clade 1b, the new variant is highly-transmissible and has been linked to the mpox outbreak in Africa.

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.

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.

India has confirmed its first case of the new, more dangerous strain of mpox known as clade 1b, health authorities said on Tuesday.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared Mpox a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) in 2022.

A deadly strain of Mpox is emerging in India, with experts linking its rise to weakened immunity caused by COVID-19. Post-pandemic immune dysfunction has made people more susceptible to infections. Health authorities urge for vigilance,