Variant of concern knocks on India's door! First two Omicron cases detected in Karnataka
Both the cases have been reported in Karnataka with the patients being two men aged 66 and 46.
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In major concern, India has detected its first two cases of new Omicron variant of coronavirus infections, which was first detected in South Africa in November. Both the cases have been reported in Karnataka. The Health Ministry gave the information on Thursday.
The cases were found in two foreign nationals, - 66 and 46. All primary contacts and secondary contacts of both the cases have been traced and are being tested, the health ministry said.
"Two cases of Omicron variant have been reported in the country so far. Both cases are from Karnataka," Lav Agarwal, joint secretary, Union health ministry, said at a press briefing today. Both the cases are mild and haven't shown any severe symptoms so far, it said.
The government said there's no need to panic about Omicron detection, but "awareness is essential." Follow Coivd-appropriate behaviour and avoid gatherings, it added.
The Omicron variant can be five times more infectious than the other known variants of the novel coronavirus. It has been designated as a "Variant of Concern" by the World Health Organisation. A "variant of concern" is the WHO's top category of worrying COVID-19 variants.
It should be noted that 373 cases of the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 have been detected in 29 nations so far. With those 2 positive cases, India has become the 30th country. The Indian government has already implemented strict measures for international travellers to check the spread of the new strain.
With 9,765 new coronavirus infections being reported in a day, India’s total tally of COVID cases rose to 3,46,06,541, while the active cases increased to 99,763, according to the ministry data updated on Thursday.
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