As many as 827 cases of JN.1– a COVID-19 subvariant– have been recorded from 12 states in the country till date.
COVID-19 Update: India has recorded total of 827 cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 from 12 states till date with Maharashtra logging the highest number of such infections, official sources said on Thursday.
As per officials, the highest number of JN.1 cases, 250, have been reported from Maharashtra while Karnataka and Kerala are at second and third spots with 199 and 155 cases, respectively, news agency PTI reported, citing union health ministry sources.
According to the data, 49 JN.1 cases have been recorded in Goa, 36 from Gujarat, 30 from Andhra Pradesh, 30 from Rajasthan, 26 each from Tamil Nadu and Telangana, 22 from Delhi, three from Odisha, and one from Haryana.
514 new COVID-19 cases recorded
Meanwhile, as per the health ministry data, India on Thursday recorded 514 new cases of COVID-19, while the number of active cases of the infection has declined to 3,422,
Three deaths two in Maharashtra and one in Karnataka have been reported in a span of 24 hours, according to the ministry’s data updated at 8 am.
The number of daily cases had dropped to double-digits till December 5, 2023, but cases began to increase after the emergence of a new sub-variant — JN.1 — and cold weather conditions.
After December 5, a maximum of a single-day rise of 841 new cases was reported on December 31, 2023, which is 0.2 per cent of the peak cases reported in May 2021, official sources said.
Of the total active cases, around 92 per cent are recovering under home isolation.
The number of people who have recuperated from the disease stands at over 4.4 crore with a national recovery rate of 98.81 per cent, according to the ministry’s website.
According to the website, 220.67 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccines have so far been administered in the country.
No cause for concern, say officials
“Even though the number of cases is rising and the JN.1 sub-variant has been detected in the country, there is no cause of immediate concern as the majority of those infected are opting for home-based treatment, indicating mild illness,” officials said.
The Centre has asked the states and Union territories to maintain a constant vigil amid an uptick in the number of Covid cases and the detection of the JN.1 sub-variant in the country.
States have been urged to ensure effective compliance of the detailed operational guidelines for revised surveillance strategy for COVID-19 shared by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
“The currently available data suggests that the JN.1 sub-variant is neither leading to an exponential rise in the new cases nor a surge in the hospitalisation and mortality,” said an official.
They have asked to monitor and report district-wise cases of Influenza-like Illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) in all health facilities regularly for early detection of rising trend of cases.
The WHO has classified JN.1 as a separate “variant of interest” given its rapidly-increasing spread, but said it poses a “low” global public health risk.
The JN.1 sub-variant of the coronavirus was previously classified as a variant of interest (VOI) as part of the BA.2.86 sub-lineages, the parent lineage that is classified as a VOI, the world body said.
India has witnessed three waves of COVID-19 in the past with the peak incidence of daily new cases and deaths being reported during the delta wave during April-June 2021.
At its peak, 414,188 new cases and 3915 deaths were reported on May 7, 2021.
(With PTI inputs)