At least two people in Odisha have tested positive for the Omicron Covid variant, making them the first Omicron cases in the state, officials said on Tuesday.
Bhubaneswar-based Institute of Life Sciences (ILS) confirmed the existence of the variant in the two patients after conducting the genome sequencing of 12 samples.
Both of them have travel history to foreign nations - Nigeria and Qatar, respectively, they said.
The returnee from Nigeria is fully vaccinated and stable in hospital, Cuttack District COVID-19 Nodal Officer Umesh Ray said.
All his contacts have tested negative as well, he added.
The other patient is also stable in the hospital.
Since the outbreak of the latest variant, 8,800 people arrived in Odisha from different countries, including 1,600 from "at-risk" nations, the officials said.
"It was expected that Omicron would make its way to the state. However, there is no need to panic as the new variant has mild symptoms on the patients," said the Nodal Officer.
Ex Supreme Court Judge V Ramasubramanian Appointed Rights Panel Chief Simultaneous Polls Bill 12th To Be Sent To Joint Parliamentary Panel Since 2015 National Farmer's Day 2024: Know History, Significance And Theme Of This Day Bengaluru Techie Loses Rs 11.8 Crore After "Digital Arrest" "Daughter Doesn't Know Her Mother's Dead": 'Pushpa 2' Stampede Victim's Husband 'Was Ahead Of His Time': Professor On Trump's Indian-Origin Pick For AI Navy's Warship INS Tushil Docks In London On Maiden Operational Deployment "It Pains My Heart...": PM Cites Germany, Lanka Attacks At Christmas Event Illegal Migrant: Delhi Schools Ordered To Follow Strict Admission Process Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.