COVID-19 in India Updates: Punjab reports 5,664 new COVID-19 cases in 24 hours

Kerala has reported 45,449 new COVID cases with 27,961 recoveries and 38 deaths in the last 24 hours. 

Punjab has reported 5,664 new COVID cases and 30 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Haryana has reported 7,516 new COVID cases including 63 Omicron infections in the last 24 hours.

Tamil Nadu has reported 30,580 new COVID cases and 40 deaths in the last 24 hours.

West Bengal has reported 6,980 new COVID-19 cases and 36 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Maharashtra has reported 40,805 new cases and 44 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said the state has reported 2,277 fresh COVID-19 infections and 13 deaths in the last 24 hours. 

Gujarat has reported 16,617 new COVID cases and 19 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Jammu and Kashmir has reported 6,253 new COVID cases and 7 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Mumbai has reported 2,550 new COVID cases in the last 24 hours.

Himachal Pradesh has reported 755 new COVID cases with 1,227 recoveries and 2 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Karnataka has reported 50,210 new COVID-19 cases with 22, 842 recoveries, and 19 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Andhra Pradesh has reported 14,440 new COVID-19 cases with 3,969 recoveries and 4 deaths in the last 24 hours.

"The Omicron variant of COVID-19 will hang around for a while but then it will die down. Delta variant is on its way out, its unlikely that Delta will survive in the all run", Dr Rajeev Jayadevan, who is advising the COVID task force at IMA Kochi, Kerala. 

Delhi has reported 9,197 new COVID-19 cases with 13,510 recoveries and 34 deaths in the last 24 hours.

A total of 875 people tested positive for the virus in the Parliament House complex so far. To date, 271 people in the Rajya Sabha Secretariat tested positive for the virus. 

"The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, who is in Hyderabad, tested COVID positive today. He has decided to remain in self-isolation for a week. He has advised all those who came in contact with him to isolate themselves and get tested", tweeted Vice President of India.

"Omicron has gone into a stage where it's more into community spread than only by travelers from abroad, given the rise in COVID cases...but it's unlike Delta. People recover early in case of Omicron", said Dr. Vivek Nangia, Principal Director, Pulmonology, Max Hospital.

Director Selvaraghavan, who's also superstar Dhanush's brother, has tested positive for COVID-19. Issuing a statement via social media, Selvaraghavan stated that he was diagnosed with the virus on Sunday, and requested everyone who has recently come in contact with him to consult their physician. In the wake of increasing COVID-19 cases caused by the Omicron variant, he urged everyone to stay vigilant and 'mask up'. 

Thane district in Maharashtra has reported 2,743 new coronavirus positive cases, which took its infection count to 6,90,601, and the death of 12 patients pushed the number of deceased to 11708, an official said on Sunday.

These cases and fatalities were recorded on Saturday, he said. Thane's COVID-19 mortality rate is 1.69 per cent at present.

India logged 3,33,533 new coronavirus infections, taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 3,92,37,264, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Sunday.

The active cases have increased to 21,87,205, while the death toll has climbed to 4,89,409 with 525 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

Reversing their earlier views that booster jabs were not necessary for healthy people, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday announced that the third shot of the COVID-19 vaccine should be available, starting with vulnerable groups. While speaking at a press briefing in Geneva, Dr Kate O'Brien, the WHO's director of immunization, vaccines and biologicals, said that the health agency will recommend Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine booster four to six months after receiving a second dose, AP reported. O'Brien stated that the booster rollout should start with the most high-risk groups. 

 Around 50 staffers of the civil hospital in Gujarat's Rajkot city, including doctors and nurses, have tested coronavirus positive, an official said Sunday.

Since none of them are in a serious condition, they are undergoing treatment in home isolation, Superintendent of Civil Hospital R S Trivedi said.

Karnataka on Sunday achieved 100 per cent coverage of first dose of COVID-19 vaccine among its eligible population, Karnataka Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar said. He also claimed that Karnataka became the first state in the country to achieve this feat.

Arunachal Pradesh's COVID-19 tally rose to 59,162 on Sunday as 359 more people tested positive for the infection, 173 less than the previous day, a senior health official said.

The death toll remained unchanged at 282 as no fresh fatalities were recorded, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa said.

Ladakh reported 283 fresh COVID-19 cases, raising its tally to 24,496, officials said on Sunday. Leh district reported 248 fresh cases and Kargil district 35, they added. There are 1,275 active cases in the UT. Of them, 1056 are under treatment in Leh and 219 in Kargil, the officials said.

The union territory of Puducherry logged 1,897 new COVID-19 cases during the last 24 hours pushing the overall tally to 1,52,213, a senior Health department official said on Sunday.

Five more people succumbed to the virus in the last 24 hours as the death toll rose to 1,906, Director of Health and Family Welfare Services G Sriramulu said in a release here.

India's R-value which indicates the rate of spread of coronavirus has further reduced to 1.57 in the week from January 14-21 and the national peak of the third wave of the infection is expected to come in the next fortnight, according to a preliminary analysis by IIT Madras.

R-value indicates the number of people an infected person can spread the disease to. A pandemic is considered to end if this value goes below 1.

The COVID-19 tally of Andaman and Nicobar Islands rose to 9,277 on Sunday as 113 more people tested positive for the infection, 18 less than the previous day, a health bulletin said.

Only one new patient has a travel history, while 112 infections were detected during contact tracing, it said.

Odisha on Sunday recorded 8,520 coronavirus cases -- 325 infections less than the previous day -- pushing the tally to 12,04,660, the health department said its bulletin.

On Saturday, the state had logged 8,845 new cases and seven deaths. The toll mounted to 8,520 with six more fatalities, the bulletin said.

Amid the Omicron scare across the world, Canada has recorded 13,555 additional COVID-19 instances on Saturday afternoon, bringing the total number of cases to 2,905,560, with 32,502 deaths. Ontario, which is the most populated province, has recorded 6,473 fresh cases with 47 more fatalities, while Quebec recorded 5,547 new cases with 68 additional deaths.

On Saturday, both provinces have reported a decrease in COVID-19-related hospitalizations, however, an increase in the number of patients in intensive care units (ICU). 

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was on Sunday forced to call off her own wedding as she tightened Covid-19 restrictions in the face of an outbreak of the Omicron variant.

"My wedding will not be going ahead," she confirmed after detailing new restrictions; including a limit of 100 fully vaccinated people at events.

India’s Cumulative COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage has exceeded 161.92 Cr (1,61,92,84,270), with more than 71 Lakh doses administered in the last 24 hours. India has administered more than 80 lakh Precaution Doses so far.

India's daily COVID-19 curve showed marginal improvement on Saturday, as it reported 3.37 lakh cases, 2.7% lower than Friday. The active cases now comprise 5.43% of the total infections, while the national recovery rate has decreased to 93.31%

The daily positivity rate dropped from 17.94% to 17.22% while the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 16.65 percent. The overall count of the Omicron variant reached 10,050 with 29 states reporting cases of the new strain.

161.92 cr vaccine doses have been administered so far under Nationwide Vaccination Drive

The Omicron variant has become a concerning issue for China as the country is getting ready for the Winter Olympics next month. The capital city of Beijing is experiencing a spike in COVID-19 cases only days before the Winter Olympics, which will begin on February 4th. The city has reported 12 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours. As per the reports of Xinhua, the local authorities stated that from 4 pm on Friday to 4 pm on Saturday, Beijing had nine verified local COVID-19 cases and three asymptomatic cases. 

New Zealanders are set to face new COVID-19 restrictions after nine cases of the omicron variant were detected in a single family that flew to Auckland for a wedding earlier this month, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced Sunday.

The so-called “red setting” of the country's pandemic response includes heightened measures such as required mask wearing and limits on gatherings, and the restrictions will go into effect on Monday.

Amid snowfall, J&K Health Department carried out a vaccination drive in several villages situated near LoC in Boniyar, Baramulla on Saturday "Children in 15-18 age group & those eligible for precaution dose were given COVID shots," said Block Medical Officer Dr Parvez Masoodi.

Amid snowfall, J&K Health Department carried out a vaccination drive in several villages situated near LoC in Boniyar, Baramulla on Saturday.

Every day 3,000-3,500 cases of COVID-19 are being reported in Jaipur and at this time the virus is at its peak. We are trying to ensure that everyone gets the second dose of the vaccine by January 31, said Dr. Narottam Sharma, Chief Medical and Health Officer, Jaipur.