HYDERABAD: The Telangana government said on Sunday that it has strengthened the surveillance system and alerted teams in view of the threat of the new coronavirus variant Omicron, even as the state recorded 135 new cases and one death, taking the caseload to 6,75,614 and the toll to 3,989.
The new 'Omicron' variant has been detected in South Africa, Botswana, Hong Kong and some European countries and hence fully vaccinated passengers arriving from there will be quarantined at home and be monitored, state Director of Public Health, G Srinivasa Rao told reporters.
Tests will be done on those who are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated and samples sent to the CDFD lab for genome sequencing if anyone tests positive, he said. A health department bulletin said active cases in the state stood at 3,535.
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation reported the highest number of cases (62), followed by Rangareddy (11) and Karimnagar districts (10). A total of 22,356 samples were tested today, taking the cumulative number of specimens examined to 2,85,11,075.
A total of 144 COVID-19 recoveries were reported today, taking the total number of recoveries to 6,68,090. The recovery rate and case fatality rate in the state was 98.88 per cent and 0.59 per cent respectively, the bulletin said.