Ajay Singh Yadav only managed a final video call with Raj Karan before his close friend became the latest of an alarming number of young Indians, including children, falling victim to the new coronavirus wave sweeping the country. Some doctors say the reason that under-45s are now vulnerable is that they go to work and eat out more, but no there is no definitive proof. They could also be more prone to a new "double mutant" variant found in 60 percent of samples in Maharashtra, the hardest-hit state. Karan, 38, was campaigning in village elections when he fell ill. Yadav rushed him to a hospital, but he too tested positive and was put into isolation. "I am devastated... I could only see him via a video call," Yadav, 39, told AFP in the northern city of Lucknow. The nation of 1.3 billion people has been hit by a new wave that has caused one million positive tests in a week, and authorities are rattled. At the start of the year, India thought it had beaten the pandemic and had kicked off a mass vaccination drive. Face masks and social distancing were cast aside and huge crowds flocked to religious festivals and election rallies. But in hospitals, doctors started warning of a rise in cases, including a new phenomenon -- younger patients -- for a disease usually viewed as riskier for older adults. - Children in hospital - In a country where around 65 percent of the population is under 35, there is growing concern about the impact on the young. New Delhi's chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has said 65 percent of new patients are below 45. India's medical research agency does not have a demographic breakdown of cases, but doctors in major cities confirmed that more young patients are coming to hospitals. "We are also seeing children under the ages of 12 and 15 being admitted with symptoms in the second wave. Last year there were practically no children," said Khusrav Bajan, a consultant at Mumbai's P.D. Hinduja National Hospital and a member of …
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