India witnessed a single-day surge of 702 COVID-19 cases, leading to a rise in the number of active cases to 4,097, as reported by the country’s health ministry in a statement on Thursday (Dec. 28). The data revealed that six deaths occurred in the last 24 hours, with two from Maharashtra and one each from Karnataka, Kerala, West Bengal, and Delhi, according to news agency PTI, citing the health ministry’s updated information at 8 am local time.
It is noteworthy that the country had reported 752 new cases on December 22.
In a related development, Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj announced on Thursday that he has reiterated directives for conducting genome sequencing of COVID-19-positive patients to identify the JN.1 variant. The government has intensified COVID-19 testing, conducting 636 tests on Wednesday. Minister Bharadwaj stated, “I have reiterated the directions for genome sequencing of all positive cases so that the number of cases of new variants can be confirmed. Yesterday, three were confirmed, of which two were of the old Omicron variant, and the new one is the JN.1 variant. The good thing is that the patient diagnosed with the new variant, who was hospitalized, has been discharged,” as conveyed to PTI Video. Currently, four patients are admitted to the hospital.
In a significant development, India’s capital, Delhi, reported its first case of the JN.1 variant.
With these updates, the cumulative count of COVID-19 cases detected in India since its outbreak in January 2020 has reached 4,50,10,944, reflecting an increase of 702 cases within 24 hours. The total death toll due to coronavirus cases in India has risen to 5,33,346, with six new deaths reported in the last 24 hours. Source: WION
