The number of cases of fast-spreading Omicron variant has risen to 236 in India, with Maharashtra and Delhi reporting the most number of infections. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a meeting today evening to review the situation.
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With 65 cases, Maharashtra has reported the most cases of the new strain. The western state is followed by Delhi (64), Telangana (24), Rajasthan (21), Karnataka (19), Kerala (15) and Gujarat (14).
Three cases have been reported in Jammu and Kashmir and two each in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh. Chandigarh, Ladakh, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal have reported one case each.
India's coronavirus tally reached 3,47,65,976 today after the country reported 7,495 new infections, which is a jump of 18 per cent from yesterday's 6,317 cases. The active cases have declined to 78,291, the lowest in 575 days. With 434 deaths over the past 24 hours, the total death count in the pandemic has climbed to 4.78 lakhs.
Of the total infections, Kerala contributed 3,205 cases followed by Maharashtra which recorded its highest single-day spike in 48 days with 1,201 fresh Covid cases, with state capital Mumbai alone reporting 490 new cases.
Delhi recorded 125 fresh cases of Covid in the last 24 hours, which is the highest in six months. With 624 active cases, the national capital now has the highest number of Covid patients in five months.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to chair a review meeting around 6:30 pm, after he is back from Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi where he will launch multiple projects worth Rs 870 crore.
The spike in Coronavirus cases, including the fast-spreading Omicron strain, has renewed calls for vaccine booster shots. "The Lancet study on the efficacy of COVISHIELD -- not more than three months -- should ring the alarm bells. The time to allow booster shots is NOW," Congress leader P Chidambaram said on Twitter.
Amid signs of rise in Omicron infections, the Centre, in an advisory, has asked the states to activate "war rooms" and bring back curbs, including night curfews to contain it. It also listed a series of prevention and containment measures that included extensive testing and regulation of gatherings.
Since it was first detected in South Africa last month, the Omicron variant has spread across the globe in lightning speed and is now present in 106 countries. Early data indicates that it could be better at dodging some vaccine protections, spurring the rush to provide boosters.
Two studies from Britain have showed Covid infections with Omicron are less likely to result in hospitalization compared to the Delta variant, the latest research confirming a trend first identified in South Africa.
