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Updated August 13th, 2021 at 11:03 IST

WHO to form new expert panel to continue study on origin of COVID-19 in China

WHO had declared COVID-19 a worldwide pandemic in March 2020. Since then, more than 200 million people have been infected with the deadly virus.

Reported by: Nikita Bishay
WHO
Credits: AP | Image:self
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In a next step towards finding the origin of COVID-19, the World Health Organisation on Thursday said that it will be creating a new advisory group to study the pathogens with pandemic potential and also understand the COVID-19 origin.

Confirming the same, WHO issued a statement on Thursday and provided details regarding the advisory group. Further speaking on the group, it said, "The International Scientific Advisory Group for Origins of Novel Pathogens, or SAGO, is a new advisory group for WHO, which will be responsible for advising WHO on the development of a global framework to systematically study the emergence of future emerging pathogens and pandemic potential. For SARS-CoV-2, it will support the rapid undertaking of recommended studies outlined in the March 2021 report."

Earlier in July, the WHO had proposed the second phase of the study to understand the origin of the virus in China which included auditing of laboratories and markets in the city. However, this proposal was rejected by Beijing. 

Further, the statement called out all the governments to stop politicising the situation and co-operate to accelerate the studies and also work together for developing a common framework for similar future situations. It also expressed hope that all the countries will be collaborating and putting their efforts into duly investigating the "lab hypothesis" theory. 

WHO on COVID-19

In March 2020, WHO had declared COVID-19 a worldwide pandemic. Since then, more than 200 million people have been infected with the deadly virus leaving millions of people dead. The first outbreak was reported from China which later released its report in March. However, there are speculations about the origin of the virus and studies are being conducted for getting a clear picture. 

(Image Credits: AP)

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Published August 13th, 2021 at 11:03 IST

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