Following a request from the United Kingdom, samples of the double-mutant Indian variant of the coronavirus are being sent to London to enable wider studies on the effectiveness of the existing vaccines against it, The Indian Express has reported. This particular variant, named B.1.617, first discovered in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra in December last year, is suspected to be fuelling the fierce second surge in India. This Indian strain, the WHO has said, has been detected in at least 17 countries including the US, UK and Singapore.