NEW DELHI: The central government has written to Delhi, Haryana, Mizoram, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh as COVID cases in these states show a rising trend and has asked them to test-track-treat-vaccinate and adhere to COVID appropriate behaviour with special emphasis on wearing of masks in crowded areas.

In a letter to these states, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said a few states are reporting a higher contribution to India’s cases and higher positivity. He asked the states to “continue monitoring the spread of infection and undertake required steps for prompt and effective management of COVID-19”.

Bhushan said that the states should monitor clusters of new COVID-19 cases and take containment efforts to cure the spread of infection. Apart from testing, they should also monitor influenza-like illnesses in all health facilities regularly to detect early warning signals of the spread of infection.

“They should undertake genomic sequencing for prescribed samples of international passengers, collection of samples from sentinel sites (identified health facilities and sewage samples) and local clusters of cases,” it said.

The ministry also asked the states to “maintain a strict watch and take pre-emptive action to control any emerging spread of infection”. The Centre had written to these five states on April 8 as well when COVID cases had started showing an upward surge.

In the letter to Delhi’s principal secretary, Manisha Saxena, the union health secretary said it has reported an increase in weekly new cases from 998 new cases in the week ending April 12 to 2,671 new cases in the last week ending April 19. The positivity rate also increased from 1.42 per cent to 3.49 per cent in the previous week in Delhi.

Haryana reported an increase in weekly new cases from 521 to 1,299. The state also saw a rise in positivity rate from 1.22 per cent to 2.86 per cent.

NEW DELHI: With 1,247 coronavirus infections being reported in a day, India’s total tally of COVID-19 cases rose to 4,30,45,527, while the active cases increased to 11,860, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday.

The death toll climbed to 5,21,966 with one fresh fatality being reported from Uttar Pradesh, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The active cases comprise 0.03 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate remained at 98.76 per cent, the ministry said.

An increase of 318 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. The daily positivity rate was recorded as 0.31 per cent and the weekly positivity rate as 0.34 per cent, according to the ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,25,11,701, while the case fatality rate was recorded a 1.21 per cent.

The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive has exceeded 186.72 crore.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19. The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year.

NEW DELHI: After a steady decline in new COVID cases for the past several weeks following the third surge in January-February this year mainly due to the Omicron variant, India’s daily COVID infections witnessed a jump of 89.8 per cent on Monday from yesterday’s 1,150 cases and reported 2,183 fresh cases in the last 24 hours.

According to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the daily case positivity rate also saw a sudden rise from 0.31 per cent (on Sunday) to 0.83 per cent (on Monday). The weekly positivity rate saw an uptick from 0.27 per cent (on Sunday) to 0.32 (on Monday).

However, with the recovery of 1,985 COVID patients in the last 24 hours, the active cases saw a minor decline to 11,542 which account for 0.03 per cent of the total cases.

The total number of recoveries in the country since the onset of the pandemic stands at 4,25,10,773. The recovery rate remained at 98.76 per cent. The death toll due to COVID-19 climbed to 5,21,965.

As many as 2,61,440 COVID samples were tested in the country during this period taking the total number of samples tested till date to 83.21 crore.

Under the Nationwide Vaccination Drive, 2,66,459 COVID vaccines were administered during the period. The total number of vaccines administered so far jumped to 1,86,54,94,355.

Meanwhile, Delhi continues to register an increase in its daily COVID-19 caseload as it reported 517 new infections during the last 24 hours. As per the Delhi health department, this is the highest number after February 20 when a total of 570 COVID-19 cases were registered.

NEW DELHI: With 1,150 people testing positive for coronavirus infection in a day, India’s total tally of COVID-19 cases rose to 4,30,42,097, while the active cases increased to 11,558, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Sunday.

The death to climbed to 5,21,751 with four fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated. The active cases comprise 0.03 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate remained at 98.76 per cent, the ministry said.

An increase of 192 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. The daily positivity rate was recorded as 0.31 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was recorded as 0.27 per cent, according to the ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,25,08,788, while the case fatality rate was recorded as 1.21 per cent.

The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive has exceeded 186.51 crore.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19. The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year.

NEW DELHI: India’s COVID-19 tally climbed to 4,30,40,947 on Saturday with 975 more people testing positive for the viral disease, while the active cases increased to 11,366, according to Union health ministry data.

The death toll reached 5,21,747 with four more fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The active cases comprise 0.03 per cent of the total infections.

The national COVID-19 recovery rate remained at 98.76 per cent, the ministry said.

An increase of 175 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 0.32 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 0.26 per cent, the ministry said.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,25,07,834.

The case fatality rate stands at 1.21 per cent, it added.

The total number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive has exceeded 186.38 crore.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

India crossed the grim milestone of 2 crore on May 4, 2021, and 3 crore on June 23.

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI : Hours after Mumbai’s civic body on Wednesday claimed that a case of the new XE variant of Covid-19 had been detected, top sources in Union health ministry said the genome sequencing of the patient’s sample does not indicate the presence of this variant, which is said to be more transmissible than the earlier variants.

According to officials of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), a 50-year-old woman with international travel history was detected with the XE variant. She was asymptomatic and did not have co-morbididities. 

The XE strain,  a variant of Omicron BA1 and BA2, occurs when the person is infected with more than one variant. A large number of XE variant patients were detected in the UK. Suresh Kakani, additional municipal commissioner of BMC, said the patient is fully vaccinated. “On arrival in Mumbai on February 10, her test came negative. But later during another test, she was detected positive. She was quarantined in a hotel. She is fine. Her test samples came negative on March 3,” Kakani added.

However, a Union health ministry source denied the presence of the variant in the patient’s sample. “Files of the sample, which is being said to be the ‘XE’ variant, were analysed in detail by experts of INSACOG who inferred that the genomic constitution of this variant does not correlate with the genomic picture of ‘XE’ variant,” the source said. 

Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) studies and monitors genome sequencing and virus variation of circulating strains of Covid-19 in India. Kakani maintained that BMC had recently carried out genome sequencing of 230 Covid-19 samples, of which one was detected with the XE variant.

The WHO has said that early estimates suggest XE is 10 per cent more contagious than BA.2 (Omicron). However, the global health body has said that this finding requires further confirmation.

What do we know so far about the new strain

• The new Covid strain XE was first detected in the UK on January 19 
• XE is a mutation of the BA.1 and BA.2 Omicron strains, referred to as a ‘recombinant’. 
• WHO said it appeared to be 10 per cent more transmissible than the BA.2 sub-variant of Omicron
• The new strain is also being called a stealth variant because of its ability to evade detection

NEW DELHI: With 1,033 new coronavirus infections being reported in a day, India’s total tally of COVID-19 cases rose to 4,30,31,958, while the active cases dipped to 11,639, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Thursday.

The death toll climbed to 5,21,530 with 43 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated. The active cases comprise 0.03 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate remained at 98.76 per cent, the ministry said.

A reduction of 232 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. The daily positivity rate was recorded as 0.21 per cent and the weekly positivity rate as 0.22 per cent, according to the ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,24,98,789 while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.21 per cent.

The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive has exceeded 185.20 crore.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year.

The 43 new fatalities include 32 from Kerala. A total of 5,21,530 deaths have been reported so far in the country including 1,47,800 from Maharashtra, 68,228 from Kerala, 40,056 from Karnataka, 38,025 from Tamil Nadu, 26,155 from Delhi, 23,497 from Uttar Pradesh and 21,200 from West Bengal.

The ministry stressed that more than 70 per cent of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities.

“Our figures are being reconciled with the Indian Council of Medical Research,” the ministry said on its website, adding that state-wise distribution of figures is subject to further verification and reconciliation.

NEW DELHI: With 795 new coronavirus infections reported in a day, India’s total tally of COVID-19 cases rose to 4,30,29,839, while the active cases dipped to 12,054, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday.

The death toll climbed to 5,21,416 with 58 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated. The active cases comprise 0.03 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate remained at 98.76 per cent, the ministry said.

A reduction of 543 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. The daily positivity rate was recorded at 0.17 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was at 0.22 per cent, according to the ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,24,96,369, while the case fatality rate was recorded as 1.21 per cent. The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive has exceeded 184.87 crore.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19. The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23.

NEW DELHI: India recorded less than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases for the first time in 715 days even as the virus tally rose to 4,30,29,044, while the active infection count fell below 13,000, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Monday.

India recorded COVID-19 cases below 1,000 for the first time since April 18, 2020 when 991 cases were reported.

A reduction of 416 cases has been recorded in the number of active infections in a span of 24 hours. India’s COVID-19 tally had surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19, 2020.

The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore coronavirus cases on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year. The daily positivity rate was recorded at 0.29 per cent and the weekly positivity rate at 0.22 per cent, according to the Health Ministry.

A total of 79.10 crore tests for the detection of COVID-19 have been conducted so far, including 3,14,823 in the last 24 hours. The 13 new fatalities include eight from Kerala. A total of 5,21,358 deaths linked to coronavirus have so far been reported in the country.

This includes 1,47,789 from Maharashtra, 68,074 from Kerala, 40,054 from Karnataka, 38,025 from Tamil Nadu, 26,153 from Delhi, 23,496 from Uttar Pradesh and 21,199 from West Bengal. The Health Ministry stressed that more than 70 per cent of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities.

“Our figures are being reconciled with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR),” the ministry said on its website, adding that state-wise distribution of figures is subject to further verification and reconciliation.

NEW DELHI: With 1,335 new coronavirus infections being reported in a day, India’s total tally of COVID-19 cases rose to 4,30,25,775, while the active cases dipped to 13,672, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Friday.

A reduction of 635 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. The daily positivity rate was recorded as 0.22 per cent and the weekly positivity rate as 0.23 per cent, according to the ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,24,90,922, while the case fatality rate was recorded as 1.21 per cent. The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive has exceeded 184.31 crore.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16. It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year. The 52 new fatalities include 48 from Kerala.

A total of 5,21,181 deaths have been reported so far in the country including 1,47,783 from Maharashtra, 67,913 from Kerala, 40,054 from Karnataka, 38,025 from Tamil Nadu, 26,152 from Delhi, 23,495 from Uttar Pradesh and 21,197 from West Bengal.

The ministry stressed that more than 70 per cent of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities. “Our figures are being reconciled with the Indian Council of Medical Research,” the ministry said on its website, adding that state-wise distribution of figures is subject to further verification and reconciliation.