India logs 116 new Covid-19 cases, active tally above 4,100

mangaloretoday.com

New Delhi, Dec 26, 2023: India reported a total of 116 fresh cases of Covid-19 in the last 24 hours, the Union Health Ministry said on Tuesday. Three deaths due to the infection were reported in Karnataka.

 

With the fresh case count, the active cases in the country were at 4,170, as on Tuesday, while the total death toll due to the viral disease reached 5,33,337.

According to sources, a total of 69 cases of JN.1 Covid-19 variant were reported in the country, till December 25, 2023.

The tally included 34 cases of the variant from Karnataka, nine cases from Maharashtra, 14 from Goa, six from Kerala, four from Tamil Nadu and two from Telangana, sources said.

Commenting on the variant, Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said, "The new strain of Covid is a sub-variant of Omicron. It has two aspects. They are not very dangerous."

"Precautions need to be taken but panic should not be created," he said.

On Monday, India saw a single-day rise of 628 new coronavirus cases while the number of active cases went up to 4,054. One death was reported from Kerala in 24 hours.

A total of 63 JN.1 COVID variant cases have been reported in the country till December 24, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday in a press statement.

The JN.1 (BA.2.86.1.1) sub-variant of Covid emerged in August in Luxembourg. It is a descendant of the BA.2.86 lineage (Pirola) of SARS COV2.

Last week, NITI Aayog member (Health) Dr VK Paul said that the scientific community in India was closely investigating the new Covid sub-variant and stressed the need for states to ramp up testing and strengthen their surveillance systems.

Even though the number of cases is rising and the JN.1 sub-variant has been detected in the country, there is no cause of immediate concern as 92 per cent of those infected are opting for home-based treatment, indicating a mild illness, officials had said.

There is also no increase in hospitalisation rates and Covid-19 is an incidental finding in those hospitalised due to other medical conditions, they said.

Meanwhile, states have been urged to ensure effective compliance of the detailed operational guidelines for a revised Covid surveillance strategy shared by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Courtesy: India Today