While India’s Omicron tally climbed to over 100 in the last 24 hours, Delhi surpassed Maharashtra to become the country’s highest contributor to the new Covid variant, the health ministry’s latest data revealed today.
India added 156 new Omicron cases between Sunday and Monday, taking the tally from 422 to 578, the ministry added.
Omicron (B.1.1.529) is a variant of SARS-CoV-2 that has been identified initially in COVID-19 patients in Botswana and South Africa. India logged its first such variant case on December 12.
The data further showed that the transmission has now reached 19 states and Union territories across India.
Yesterday, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh reported their first Omicron cases.
According to the official data, as shared by the health ministry, Delhi (142) has reported the highest number of Omicron infections in the country, followed by Maharashtra (141), Kerala (57), Gujarat (49), Rajasthan (43), Telangana (41), Tamil Nadu (34) and Karnataka (31).
The states which showed a marked increase in Omicron cases over the past 24 hours are: Delhi (from 79 to 142 cases), Maharashtra (from 108 to 141 cases), Kerala (from 38 to 57 cases), Madhya Pradesh (from 0 to 9 cases), the hindustan times reported.
However, the health ministry pointed out that of the 578 total Omicron cases in India, 151 patients have already recovered or been discharged.
