NEW DELHI: India on Saturday recorded 743 fresh COVID-19 cases, the highest single-day hike in 225 days, the Union health ministry said. Seven new deaths - three from Kerala, two from Karnataka, and one each from Chhattisgarh and Tamil Nadu - were reported in the country in the last 24 hours, according to health ministry data.
The number of daily cases was in double digits till December 5 but it began to rise again amid cold weather conditions and after the emergence of a new COVID-19 variant JN.1, which is driving a surge in many countries, including the US, China, and Singapore.
India for the past few weeks has been recording a surge in COVID-19 cases.
Officials said as many as 145 COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 have been detected in the country since December 28. JN.1 variant, which is classified as a ‘variant of interest’ by the World Health Organisation (WHO), has been identified as the most prevalent strain in the US, accounting for over 44 per cent of cases there.
In India, 178 cases of JN.1 sub-variant have been reported from nine states till Friday. Goa has reported the highest number of cases with 47.
It is followed by Kerala at 41. The other states where JN.1 cases have been detected are - Gujarat (36), Karnataka (34), and Maharashtra (nine). Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu have reported four cases each, while two cases have been recorded from Telangana and one from Delhi.
Experts said that JN.1 is highly transmissible, but so far most cases in India have been mild with symptoms similar to a common cold.
They also have cautioned people with comorbidities and the elderly to avoid crowded places and wear face masks.
Prof G C Khilnani, Chairman of PSRI Institute of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, and former professor and head of the pulmonary medicine and sleep disorders at AIIMS, said it is always better if people wear a mask. He added that the new strain has the potential to evade pre-existing immunity as it is highly transmissible.