The human metapneumovirus (hMPV) is not new, and has been in India for a long time, said virologist Dr Gagandeep Kang, addressing general anxiety in the country, on whether the world was on the verge of another Covid-like situation.

Citing a published study (2009) by the head of virology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Dr Kang told businessline, the data in the study is from 2005, so the virus has been in India for at least 20 years. “If you were going to worry about something, I would worry about a truly novel pathogen, not one that we have known about for 20 years,” she added.