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The increase in Covid cases in Delhi is worrying - 180 Friday, 125 in 24 hours Thursday, 91 on Tuesday and 69 on Saturday. Active Covid cases - including all known strains - are now 624.
Mumbai - India's financial capital - has also reported a worrying increase in Covid cases (again, of all known strains) after 680new cases were detected Friday; this was the highest single-day spike in 78 days.
On Friday evening the Union Health Ministry said India's active Omicron caseload was 244; 114 others had been treated and discharged. Apart from Maharashtra and Delhi, Telangana (38), Tamil Nadu (34), Karnataka (31), Gujarat (30), Kerala (27) and Rajasthan (22) have cases of the new strain.
Health Ministry data from Friday showed 122 new Omicron cases were reported in the past 24 hours - meaning India's Omicron caseload jumped by a third in one day. India's Omicron caseload crossed 100 exactly one week ago and it crossed 200 on Tuesday.
A worrying point is that 91 per cent of all Omicron patients in India were fully vaccinated and 27 per cent had no travel history, reinforcing experts' fears the new strain can evade existing vaccines and is entrenched in the local population.
A study to test the impact of boosters - on 3,000 fully vaccinated individuals - is being planned. Several countries, including the US and those in Europe, have started giving booster shots. India has yet to do so, despite calls from scientific experts and the WHO.
The government last week told the Delhi High Court it is studying evidence on this topic, and it has also stressed on the need to ensure maximum possible primary vaccination coverage - that is, ensuring all eligible people have received the mandatory two doses.
Concern over the spread of Omicron have also been raised by the Allahabad High Court, which has asked the Election Commission to reconsider holding elections in over half-a-dozen states this year, including the country's most populous state - Uttar Pradesh.
UP and Madhya Pradesh have become the first states to impose restrictions in the face of the Omicron threat. Both states have announced 11 pm - 5 am night curfews.
Over 1.5 lakh Omicron cases have been reported from 108 countries, with the UK accounting for over 90,000 and Denmark over 30,000. 26 deaths have been linked to the virus. The WHO has urged countries to 'boost, boost, boost' in the face of the threat.
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