JAIPUR: Eleven cases of the new Kappa variant of COVID-19 have been detected in Rajasthan, Health Minister Raghu Sharma said on Tuesday.
Of these, four cases each are from Alwar and Jaipur, two from Barmer and one is from Bhilwara, he said.
The minister said reports of nine samples have been received from Delhi and two from the Sawai Mansingh (SMS) Hospital.
The Kappa variant is a moderate form of the coronavirus as compared to its delta variant, Sharma said.
No fresh fatality linked to the coronavirus was recorded in Rajasthan on Tuesday, even as 28 new cases raised the infection count to 9,53,187 in the state, according to an official report.
The death toll from the pandemic stands at 8,945 in Rajasthan, it said.
Ten of the fresh COVID-19 cases were reported from Jaipur and six from Alwar, the report said.
A total of 9,43,629 people in the state have recovered from the infection and the number of active cases at present is 613, it said.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday said the state is managing COVID-19 vaccination excellently, while blaming the delay in the drive on short supply of vaccine doses.
Reviewing the progress of the inoculation campaign in the state from his official residence, the chief minister urged the Centre to give adequate supply of vaccines as a large number of people are yet to get their second dose.
He directed officials of the state government to demand an increase in the supply of vaccines from the Centre so that people can be vaccinated on time.
In a statement, the chief minister said that the World Health Organization (WHO) has appreciated the vaccination management of Rajasthan.
"It is a matter of pride for the state. Our medical personnel have done the vaccination with utmost efficiency," he added.
Gehlot said a protocol should be prepared for religious events in the coming months in the wake of the viral disease.
Health Minister Raghu Sharma said his department was ensuring proper preparations, keeping in mind the possibility of a third wave of the pandemic.
A door-to-door survey has been started for non-communicable diseases, he added.
So far, 2.67 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in the state.
Out of these, 2.18 crore people have received their first dose and 48.87 lakh people have received both doses, Health Secretary Siddharth Mahajan said.