A new variant of coronavirus - C.1.2 - which has been detected in South Africa and some other countries, could be more infectious than earlier strains and may evade vaccines, said an infectious diseases consultant who is also a member of the Maharashtra Covid-19 task force on Thursday.

Dr Vasant Nagvekar, an infectious diseases consultant with a Mumbai hospital and a member of the government task force on Covid-19, said the new variant also has mutation rate that is nearly "twice as fast" as the rate of other variants.