Omicron cases in India: Maharashtra reports 198 new Omicron cases; total tally now 450

Bihar has reported its first confirmed case of Omicron variant as a 26-year-old man in Patna's Kidwaipuri tested positive for the virus, State Health Department informed. 

Delhi on Thursday recorded 1,313 new COVID-19 cases, the highest single-day rise since May 26, while the positivity rate mounted to 1.73 per cent, according to health department data. No fresh deaths were reported in the city.

On May 26, the national capital had reported 1,491 cases with a positivity rate of 1.93 per cent and 130 deaths.

"RTPCR test is mandatory for the pilgrims arriving from various states to Ganga Sagar Mela. Sanitisation & vaccination drive has been started in the area. Pilgrims & sadhus can get vaccinated. 30 lakh pilgrims expected to arrive", P Ulaganathan, DM, South 24 Parganas, said. 

Kolkata's tally of new COVID-19 infections more than doubled in 24 hours as the metropolis reported 1,090 cases on Thursday, as per the state Health Department. The city reported 540 new cases on Wednesday, it said.

West Bengal registered more than 2,000 cases after nearly six months as the state reported 2,128 new infections.It was nearly double the cases reported on Wednesday when 1,089 infections were detected, and more than four times that reported on last Thursday -- 516.The state's positivity rate jumped to 5.47 per cent, from 2.84 per cent on Wednesday.

West Bengal has so far reported 16,35,034 COVID-19 cases.

Maharashtra has reported 5,368 fresh COVID cases with1,193 recoveries, and 22 deaths today, taking active cases to 18,217. The number of Omicron cases rises to 450, with the state recording 198 cases of the variant today. 

"BCCI may postpone Under-16 Vijay Merchant Trophy, scheduled to be held from January 9, over COVID concerns", BCCI Secretary Jay Shah told ANI

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray held an emergency review meeting with task forces amid rising cases of COVID in the state. 

Amid rising cases of COVID-19 in India, the High Court and district courts of Delhi will function on virtual mode only from January 3 to January 15.

As of Thursday, December 30, Mumbai has reported 3,671 fresh COVID cases with 371 recoveries in the last 24 hours. The active caseload stands at 11,360. Out of the total cases in the city, Dharavi has recorded 20 cases, the highest since May 18. 

Gujarat Govt has decided to extend COVID-related restrictions from December 31 to January 7, State Health Minister Rushikesh Patel informed. 

Bharat Biotech released data on Covaxin for kids. The study suggests that Covaxin is safe for children between the age of 2 to 18 years. 

The West Bengal government has decided to suspend all flights arriving from the UK to Kolkata. This will be effective from January 3, 2022.  

"Under COVID guidelines, hotels & permit rooms are allowed to open till midnight but with limited capacity. Any type of event will be banned. Gathering in public places is also prohibited from 9 pm to 6 am", said Amitesh Kumar CP, Nagpur on New Year celebrations.

"Govt will send SMS to the eligible elderly population to remind them for taking the precautionary dose that starts from January 10", Health Ministry informed. 

"We are increasing the pool of available vaccines. Corbovax and Covovax are approved for emergency use in adults", Union Health Ministry said.

According to the Health Ministry report, there are 961 cases of Omicron variant of Coronavirus in India, out of which 320 patients have recovered. 

"The weekly positivity rate of more than 10% is being noted in 8 districts including 6 districts from Mizoram, one from Arunachal Pradesh, Kolkata in West Bengal. The weekly case positivity rate is between 5-10% in 14 districts", Luv Aggarwal, Joint Secretary, Union Health Ministry said. 

"On average, India reported more than 8,000 cases per day last week. Overall case positivity rate stands at 0.92%. From Dec 26 onwards, the country has been reporting 10,000 daily cases", Luv Aggarwal, Joint Secretary, Union Health Ministry informed. 

Union Health Ministry addresses a press conference concerning the rise in Omicron and COVID-19 cases in India. 

In a key development, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Thursday asserted that the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is a fast-spreading variant of concern. Furthermore, he added that the Omicron variant is accounting for 46% of the total COVID-19 cases in the national capital. The health minister also informed that the variant is gradually spreading in the community, as deducted from the latest test reports. 

"There are 200 coronavirus patients in Delhi hospitals. Genome sequencing of the samples of 115 patients showed 46% had Omicron. These people include those who do not have any travel history. It means Omicron is now inside Delhi," Jain said in a media briefing. "Indeed, the variant is gradually spreading in the community," Satyendar Jain added.

Jain said that out of the 200 coronavirus cases in Delhi hospitals, only 102 belong to the city. He said that a total of 115 are asymptomatic and have been kept in hospitals as a precautionary measure. The minister also added that the experts have claimed the variant to be mild compared to its predecessors like the Delta variant.

"Most Omicron cases are being detected among people coming on flights from the UK. The Centre must decide on imposing restrictions on flights from countries where Omicron cases are high. We will see what the Ministry of Civil Aviation will do", said West Bengal Cheif Minister Mamata Banerjee at Ganga Sagar.

"Certain restrictions will be imposed only in areas where COVID19 cases are increasing", she added. 

The UK is seeing a shortage of COVID tests as millions of people struggle to receive the test following a massive rise in demand. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been accused of the shortage as he urged people to get quick COVID tests before going out for New Year's Eve, and the Omicron wave has increased demand for both lateral flow tests and PCRs. On Wednesday, there were a total of 183,000 confirmed positive cases in the country. As per a report by The Guardian, there were allegations that health professionals are unable to receive tests.

Some Conservative MPs have also demanded answers from government ministers. They claimed that tests were difficult to come by, with pharmacies across England displaying signals that they had run out of lateral flow test (LFT) kits, The Guardian reported. The government's websites reported that walk-in PCR testing was unavailable in some regions of the country, such as Hartlepool while ordering home delivery of LFTs had been discontinued by mid-afternoon.

Chandigarh Administration informed that asymptomatic COVID-positive patients should be admitted to 'Mini COVID Care Centre' if there is no isolation facility (separate room with washroom) available at their home.

"'Mini COVID Care Centre' is established at Indira Holiday Home, Sector 24B, Chandigarh, due to the rising number of cases. COVID patients will be sent to this center from January 3, 2022", it added. 

Amid the Omicron surge in the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has claimed that nearly 90% of the patients who have been admitted to the intensive care units (ICUs) with COVID-19 infection had not received their booster shot. As per Sky News, the Prime Minister while speaking to the reporters said that approximately 2.4 million qualified double-vaccinated individuals have yet to take the offer of the COVID booster jab and that the vast majority of patients in critical COVID related hospitalisations fall into this category.    

PM Johnson said, "I'm sorry to say this but the overwhelming majority of people who are currently ending up in intensive care in our hospitals are people who are not boosted", Sputnik reported. Further, he stressed that if currently the citizens do not get vaccinated, then there would be eight times more hospital admits. 

Although there are no official NHS data on the vaccination status of patients in ICUs, however, recent research from the Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre indicates that the vast majority of people in ICUs in London who contracted COVID last month were not inoculated. 

Optimus Pharma was granted permission for Restricted Use under Emergency Situation from CDSCO for its antiviral pill Molnupiravir on December 28, 2021. The DCGI had given nod for conducting Phase III Clinical Trial for orally administered Molnupiravir capsules on patients with mild COVID-19 symptoms.

Given the surge of Coronavirus cases with a rapidly growing number of infections, Optimus pharma developed the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and the formulation in Capsule form and had obtained approval after completing Phase 3 Clinical Trial in India.

Optimus Pharma Chairman and Managing Director Dr D. Srinivasa Reddy said that the company is ready to gear up manufacturing of Molnupiravir in India. The Clinical Trial on 1,218 patients has shown promising results for Molnupiravir.

The drug is proven to successfully reduce viral load effectively with RT-PCR negativity on Day 5 was 71% patients in the treatment group as compared to 51.6% in SoC group, 97.3% in the treatment group and 84% in SoC group on Day 10, and nearly all the patients recovered by Day 14 and 28 of the treatment duration. The trial has also revealed promising symptomatic improvement in the patient’s health, he added.

Read to know more 

It was in December 2019, when a handful of people in the Chinese city of Wuhan fell ill in what authorities said was a “mysterious” pneumonia outbreak. Soon, it spiralled into one of the most lethal diseases that humankind has ever witnessed- the Coronavirus. The SARS-CoV-2 virus soon mutated, leading to the emergence of new variants including the Delta, Omicron. However, with new and more efficient vaccines in their arsenal, more and more countries have reduced the isolation time of COVID patients. Here is everything you need to know. 

How long are people infectious?

According to health officials, an individual can be infectious for about two days before they develop Coronavirus symptoms. Meanwhile, estimates of how long a person is infectious can vary but US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has said that a patient with ‘mild-to-moderate COVID-19’ remains infectious no longer than 10 days after symptom onset. Those with severe illness can continue to be infected for 20 days. 

“Most patients with more severe-to-critical illness or those who are severely immunocompromised likely remain infectious no longer than 20 days after symptom onset; however, there have been several reports of severely immunocompromised people shedding replication-competent virus beyond 20 days,” according to CDC. 

Read to know about varied quarantine rules across different countries

Amid rising COVID-19 infections coupled with Omicron scare, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan writes to Delhi, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka & Jharkhand, advising the States to enhance COVID19 testing, strengthen hospital-level preparedness, increase pace and coverage of vaccination.

As the new COVID-19 variant Omicron is increasing throughout the world, the United States Chief Medical Adviser Anthony Fauci stated that the number of cases of the 'highly mutated' coronavirus strain would likely surge by the end of January in the nation. While responding to the question, when asked about the peak of cases, Fauci told CNBC on Wednesday, “I would imagine, given the size of our country and the diversity of vaccination versus no vaccination, that it likely will be more than a couple of weeks, probably by the end of January, I would think.” 

According to data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on December 28, the Omicron strain was responsible for 58.6% of all new infections in the US in the week ending December 25. The Omicron strain, which was initially discovered in South Africa in November, is reported to be more transmissible but generates milder cases, according to public health experts. 

In addition to this, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky informed that the current seven-day daily average instances of the disease in the US are around 240,400 each day, up about 60% from the previous week. Further, depending on what the health agency now understands about COVID-19 and the Omicron variant, CDC has lowered the recommended duration for COVID-19 isolation from 10 days to 5 days on December 27. It is worth noting that only asymptomatic COVID-19 infections are covered by this regulation. When the patient's quarantine time ends, they must wear the mask for nearly 5 days, according to a statement released by the CDC on Monday. 

Read more about Fauci's Omicron warning in US

Ever since the Omicron variant of coronavirus started to spread across the world, the confusion among mild symptoms of COVID-19, common cold and the flu has also escalated. All three illnesses share similar symptoms of sore throat, running nose and muscle aches which often make it hard to distinguish the infection. The new variant of coronavirus, B.1.1.529 is causing a rise in COVID-19 cases but the hospitalisations continue to remain considerably low. 

The evidence has suggested that for people vaccinated against COVID-19, the Omicron variant is likely to be less severe. According to CNN, epidemiologist and former Detroit Health Department executive director, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed said, “The important thing to remember is a vaccine is like giving a 'be on the lookout' call to your immune system. So its capacity to identify, target and destroy viruses is so much higher every time we take another boost of the vaccine” while noting that infections should still be taken seriously.

Read more to differentiate between common cold, flu and COVID

Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray to chair meeting with COVID19 Task Force today. The meeting will be held in virtual format

Mumbai's 'Bandra Reclamation- Bandra Wonderland' closed for visitors starting December 30 until January 2, due to rising COVID19 cases in the city.

"Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, has been underway in UP since the beginning of the pandemic, we keep extending it for a 3 months duration. With the surge in COVID-19 cases, the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, will now be implemented till March 31, 2022"

"A woman of around 30 years of age, who has already been vaccinated 4 times in different countries, tested #COVID19 positive at the airport & was admitted to a hospital. She was asymptomatic & tested negative a day before,' Indore CMHO Dr Bhure Singh Setia told ANI.

AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi alleged that the Centre had made no preparations for the COVID-19 booster dose rollout. Contending that the healthcare and frontline workers should have been administered the third dose of the vaccine much earlier, he claimed that India did not have a sufficient quantity of doses of the vaccines required for the precautionary dose. Moreover, Owaisi accused the Centre of committing the same mistake which they had made during the second wave of COVID-19. This was a reference to the criticism over the shortage of doses resulting in a delay in vaccination.

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi remarked, "In my Parliament speech, I had mentioned that 7 and a half to 8 months have elapsed since health workers, frontline workers have taken their second dose of Covishield and Covaxin. Their immunity is finished. Experts have said that they cannot be administered Covishield or Covaxin as the precautionary dose. So, will you give them Corbevax, Covovax, Gennova mRNA vaccine, or Bharat Biotech's nasal vaccine? You have only been given emergency use authorization now. And you are saying that you will administer the vaccine from January 15. How much will this government lie?"

An increase of 5,400 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of  24 hours. Earlier, 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 two crores on May 4 and three crores on June 23. 

With 13,154 people testing positive for Coronavirus infection in a day, India's total tally of COVID-19 cases rose to 3,48,22,040, while the active cases increased to 82,402. The death toll has climbed to 4,80,860 with 268 fresh fatalities, the data stated.

Amid the rising concern over increased COVID-19 cases, World Health Organization Chief Scientist Dr Soumya Swaminathan on Wednesday, December 29, backed the WHO-approved vaccines. Dr Swaminathan, while speaking about the Omicron variant of COVID-19, said that the WHO-approved vaccines have a very high rate of protection. However, she added that the Omicron variant is infecting both vaccinated and unvaccinated people worldwide.

WHO Chief Scientist Dr Soumya Swaminathan has now stated that vaccines are still proving to be effective even though the numbers of fresh cases are going up exponentially across the world. She said that the severity of the disease has not surged to a new level, which shows promise. The health expert stated that the Omicron variant is infecting both vaccinated and unvaccinated people worldwide and said that more information about the new variant is still emerging.

“We have to wait and see how the virus affects unvaccinated people,” Dr Swaminathan said. Furthermore, the WHO scientist also stressed the importance of balancing the need for booster shots. “Many countries have started booster programs to supplement the immune response of the citizens. However, there are so many unvaccinated people. We have to balance the need for the booster doses,” she added. 

Amid the rising cases of the new Omicron variant across the globe, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has provided approximately 100 million COVID-19 vaccinations to Bangladesh since June 2021, from different World Health Organization (WHO)-approved producers. According to a press release from UNICEF, Bangladesh has achieved the benchmark after receiving a delivery of 20.46 million vaccine doses from China on Tuesday, as part of a cost-sharing deal between the Bangladesh administration, the Asian Development Bank, as well as UNICEF. 

After having reported three more Omicron cases on December 29, Bangladesh is now currently standing with seven Omicron cases, Dhaka Tribune reported. On Tuesday morning, Bangladesh recorded one additional fatality from COVID-19 and 397 new cases. Meanwhile, as per Worldometers, over 1,584,518 individuals have been affected by the disease in the nation since the outbreak, and more than 28,063 people have lost their lives due to coronavirus. 

The Commissioner of Police issues the guidelines to the management of 3 Star & above Hotels, Clubs and Pubs with regard to New Year celebrations on the intervening night of 31-12-2021/01-01-2022 up to 1.00 AM (midnight). 

COVID-19 norms: 

1. As per the G.O.Ms.No.327, date: 25-12-2021 of the GAD Department the following conditions shall be followed involving a congregation of people.
i. The organizers and management shall ensure that Physical distancing is maintained within the venue.
ii. The organizers and management shall ensure that No person without a mask shall be allowed in the venue.
iii. The organizers and management shall ensure that IR thermometers/thermal scanners should be arranged at the entry point to scan persons entering the venue. 

2. The organizers shall ensure that nobody shall be permitted without the production of either electronic or physical certificate of both doses of vaccination. 

3. The Licensee should personally and responsibly ensure that passes/tickets/coupons should not be    Sold/issued/given in excess of the capacity which violates Covid protocols and social distancing in view of safety of all. 

4. As per the G.O. No. 82. Dt. 11-04-2021 of GAD a fine of Rs. 1,000/- for not wearing the mask by people in public spaces will be imposed. 

5. In the recent reporting of the omicron variant, the organizers shall ensure the following in addition to the regular Covid guidelines: 
i.All the necessary steps should be taken by the organizers to ensure that the attendees/invitees are well aware of relevant information, regulations and restriction, in vogue, beforehand. Regular announcements / visual display arrangements can be made, to that effect, at the venue.
ii. Engage more staff and stewards at the higher-risk areas where crowds are likely to form, such as concession stands/bars, toilets, lifts, corridors, walkways and entry/exit points and at standing performances for proper adherence to the covid norms.
iii. All the staff and Organizers, present at the venue should be tested negative for COVID-19 in the last 48 hours 

6. The organizer shall ensure to provide surgical masks to all the persons at the venue and shall provide sanitisers/hand rub of prescribed norms and specifications. 

7. The organizer shall ensure that the premises and potentially contaminated areas should be cleaned and disinfected before the start of the program. 

8. Proper COVID appropriate hygiene shall be ensured for all the edible items and cutlery etc. 

9. All these conditions are subject to COVID Pandemic Rules and Guidelines in vogue and as per the Disaster Management Act,2005 or which may be announced subsequently i.e., in force as on that date.

Telangana government has extended the timing for bars and diners to serve liquor till 1 pm and Liquor shops can be open till 12 am on  December 31. 

An alarm has been sounded in Mumbai after the city reported a sharp increase in daily COVID-19 cases with a steep rise in Omicron infections. In light of the worsening Coronavirus situation, the Mumbai Police has ordered a complete ban on New Year celebrations, both indoor and outdoor, with effect from Thursday, December 30.

In a circular issued on Thursday, the Greater Mumbai police ordered a total prohibition on all kinds of New Year celebrations or gathering held in public or private spaces between December 30 to January 7. Moreover, Section 144 of the IPC, restricting the gathering of more than 4 people in one place, will remain in force till the said date, in light of the increase in COVID-19 and Omicron cases in Mumbai. 

"In light of the surge in COVID-19 cases and the emergence of the new Coronavirus variant, 'Omicron' in view to prevent danger to human life, health and to curtail transmission of the virus, I hereby prohibit any New Year Celebration, program, function, gathering, party, or activity happening in closed or public spaces including restaurants, hotels, bars, banquet halls, resorts, clubs or rooftops, etc," read the circular issued by  Chaitanya S, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations), Greater Mumbai.

The Maharashtra government had convened a meeting with Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to review the situation and preparedness. The meeting was held on the day when Mumbai reported 2,510 new COVID-19 cases, a steep rise from the 1,377 infections it reported a day ago, and one more death. With fresh additions, the Coronavirus tally in the metropolis rose to 7,75,808, while the death toll increased to 16,375, as per data released by the government. 

Meanwhile, Maharashtra reported 85 fresh cases of the Omicron variant of Coronavirus, the highest single-day tally recorded so far by any state in the country, taking the overall count to 252.

Amid the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan since the Taliban took over, around 21 COVID-19 hospitals have been shut down due to a lack of financial resources. While the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) suspended financial aid to Afghanistan after the Taliban reconquered the nation, a report by Pajhwok Afghan News stated that the Taliban-led government’s Ministry of Public Health is concerned over the closure of more than 20 hospitals. However, it added that a number of international organisations are ready to fund some of the hospitals.

Before the former Afghan government fell to the Taliban in August this year, hundreds of millions of US dollars were provided to the war-ravaged country in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s administration had allocated 1.2 million dollars from the government to tackle the coronavirus. Now, with the emergence of ‘highly-mutated Omicron variant, freezing of crucial aid, and closing of COVID-19 hospitals, Afghanistan faces a new set of humanitarian challenges as the world enters the third year of pandemic. 

As per the report, the United States froze nearly $10 billion assets of Afghanistan and international community aid was also suspended. Dr. Javed Hajir, a spokesman for MoPH, told Pajhwok Afghan News that following the Coronavirus outbreak in Afghanistan, the government had put together 38 hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients. However, due to lack of funds, he said that out of those 38, only 17 are operational.

As the United States is witnessing the spike of COVID-19 cases in recent days, the nation's Chief Medical Adviser Anthony Fauci has advised Americans to avoid large New Year's Eve celebrations and to prepare for another round of booster doses as well as testing. While speaking at a White House COVID-19 Response Team briefing, Fauci has made these comments amid the surge of the new Omicron variant. He said, "If your plans are to go to a 40 to 50-person New Year's Eve party with all the bells and whistles and everybody hugging and kissing, I would strongly recommend that this year, we do not do that," AP reported. 

Despite considerable hesitation among residents to even receive the initial course of vaccination, the health expert stated it was "conceivable" that the Biden administration would mandate another round of booster injections. While talking about the fourth COVID Vax jab, he added that it would be extremely crucial “for us to determine the durability of protection, particularly against severe disease for the third shot booster of an mRNA (vaccine) and the second shot of a (Johnson & Johnson)," Sputnik reported. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is a single-dose vaccination, unlike most others that require a second injection to be fully effective.

Section 144 imposed in Mumbai starting from today till 7th January 2022, in view of rising Covid cases Police prohibit New Year's celebrations, parties in any closed or open space incl restaurants, hotels, bars, pubs, resorts & clubs from Dec 30 Dec till Jan 7.

This comes after Mumbai, on Wednesday, registered an 82.28 per cent rise in cases. Mumbai has reported a sharp jump in daily coronavirus cases at 2,510 yesterday. Also, one death was reported in Mumbai. With fresh additions, the coronavirus tally rose to 7,75,808, while the death toll increased to 16,375. The recovery count increased to 7,48,788 after 251 people were discharged during the day, leaving Mumbai with 8,060 active cases. With 51,843 swab samples examined in the last 24 hours, the number of coronavirus tests in the country's financial capital went up to 1,35,76,453, the BMC bulletin said.

While the number of patients infected with the coronavirus on the rise again, Himachal Pradesh has vaccinated its entire population eligible for inoculation. Himachal Pradesh's Health Minister Rajiv Saizal shared the news on Wednesday and said that it was a matter of pride for the state to achieve such a feat. Besides this, Saizal also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his decision to allow vaccination among children starting the first week of January in 2022. 

"It's a matter of pride for us that we have completed the target to vaccinate all eligible population in Himachal Pradesh. We want to thank PM Modi for the decision for vaccination of children", the minister was reported saying. 

Amid a spike in infections from the new COVID-19 strain, Omicron, among both vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals, WHO on Wednesday stated that the existing vaccines have appeared to be still effective against the Omicron. Emphasising that despite the surge in infection rates, the severity of the disease has remained lower than expected, WHO chief scientist Dr Soumya Swaminathan said that since the "T cell immunity is holding up better against Omicron. This will protect us against severe disease." Taking to Twitter, she also urged people to get their due jabs.

Though the economy has steadily gained momentum and remained resilient since the second quarter of the current fiscal, the Omicron variant of coronavirus remains the major challenge along with rising inflation pressures, says the Reserve Bank in its second financial stability report.

In the foreword to the report released on Wednesday, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das notes that after the destructive second wave in April-May 2021, the growth outlook has progressively improved, though there are headwinds from global developments and more recently from the Omicron virus. 

A stronger and sustainable recovery hinges on the revival of private investment and shoring up private consumption, which unfortunately still remain below their pre-pandemic levels, he notes.

Admitting that inflation remains a concern as it is by the build-up of cost-push pressures, Das has called for stronger supply-side measures to contain food and energy prices.

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Night curfew was clamped in Manipur from Wednesday till January 31, 2022 following the detection of Omicron in the state, according to an order issued by the state chief secretary Rajesh Kumar.

The night curfew will be in force daily from 9 pm to 4 am from December 29 till January end, as per the order by Kumar who is also the chairperson of the state executive committee of State Disaster Management Authority.

Manipur had reported its first case of Omicron on December 27 when a 48-year-old retrunee from Tanzania tested positive for the COVID variant.

The order banned music concerts, Thabal Chongba (a traditional Manipuri group dance), celebratory feasts and large gatherings in any enclosed area. Exemption was given for essential services and medical emergencies.

The order asked people to strictly follow the COVID-19 protocol and wear face masks, keep six feet distance between people and frequently wash their hands with soap. 

Two people have been found infected with Omicron in Gurugram, raising the number of cases of the new coronavirus variant to three in this district falling in the national capital region (NCR), officials said on Wednesday.

According to the health department, the 58-year-old woman and the man, aged 31, were fully vaccinated and had no recent travel history.

Meanwhile, Gurugram recorded 151 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, the highest single-day spike in the last six months. The fresh cases pushed the active case count to 502 in the district, according to official data.

The sample of the man, who was found infected with Omicron on Wednesday, was collected on December 19. The sample had turned out positive for coronavirus on December 21. The health department had instructed him to stay in home isolation. The woman was found Covid positive on December 17.

After this, samples of both were taken and sent for genome sequencing. Both were found infected with the Omicron variant on December 28.

unjab has reported its first Omicron case with a 36-year-old man, who came from Spain earlier this month, testing positive for the new variant of coronavirus.

The man, who arrived in India on December 4, visited his relatives in Nawanshahr in Punjab, a health official said.

The man tested negative for coronavirus upon his arrival. However, he tested positive on December 12, he said.

He was then admitted to a hospital and his samples were sent for genome sequencing at a facility set up at the Government Medical College, Patiala, the official added.

"The genome sequencing report declaring him positive for the Omicron variant came on December 28," said Dr Rajiv Bhaskar, state nodal officer for COVID-19

Gujarat on Wednesday reported 19 new cases of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 from four districts, raising their overall tally to 97, the health department said.

Also, 17 more patients infected with the new variant have recovered in the state, pushing their count to 41, it said.

Out of the new Omicron cases, 10 persons had a history of international travel, while nine had no travel history, said the department in a release.

Ahmedabad city reported eight new cases of the new variant, followed by Surat at six, Vadodara three and Anand two, the release said.

With this, Ahmedabad city accounts for the highest number of such cases at 33.

Vadodara city has so far reported 21 Omicron cases, Surat nine, Anand district eight and Kheda six.

Omicron, classified as a 'variant of concern' by the WHO, is said to be highly contagious and has caused worries all over the world. 

Six people including a 52-year-old man who returned from Uganda were found infected with COVID-19 in the district in random sampling, officials on Wednesday said.

Five more cases of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus have been detected in Karnataka, Health Minister K Sudhakar said in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

This takes the state's tally of Omicron cases to 43.

"Five new cases of Omicron confirmed in Karnataka on 29-12-21. (1) 22 yr female, Davanagere (Travelled from USA) (2) 24 yr male, Bengaluru (Returned from USA via Qatar) (3) 53 yr male, Tamil Nadu (Arrived at KIAL from Dubai) (4) 61 yr male, Bengaluru (Travelled from Ghana via Doha)," Sudhakar said in a tweet.

Stating that fifth case is a 41-year-old male from Mumbai (travelled from Mumbai to Bengaluru by flight), he said, "All positive persons have been isolated and primary and secondary contacts have been identified and tested." The country's first two Omicron cases were detected in the State on December 2. 

In order to contain the COVID-19 spread, the Goa government has announced new restrictions amid the Omicron scare. Casinos, cinema halls, auditoriums, river cruises, water parks and entertainment parks will operate at a maximum of 50% capacity. The government said that fully vaccinated or those possessing negative COVID certificates will be permitted entry into the state.

"Place of public amusement, including Spa, Massage parlour, restaurant, pub, bar, hall, auditorium, gym, marriage, venue, cinema halls, river cruises, waterparks, entertainment parks, to adhere to all COVID safety protocols, including use of masks, sanitisers, thermal screening etc,"  the statement said adding that entry will be permitted to those who possess vaccination certificate or negative COVID test.

For inter-state movement of vehicles, the government said, "Two drivers and one helper per goods vehicle (will be permitted). However, the police or the other authorities will have to scan such persons with thermal guns to see whether they display any symptoms and if they display any symptoms then the police or the other authorities should deny access to such persons within the state of Goa."

Maharashtra on Wednesday reported 85 fresh cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, the highest single-day tally recorded so far by any state in the country, taking the overall count to 252, the state health department said.

"Today, 85 cases of the Omicron variant have been reported in the state. Of these, 47 patients have been reported by the National Institute of Virology (NIV - (where samples were sent for genome sequencing) and 38 by the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER)," a health bulletin said.

The 38 Omicron cases reported by IISER are from community surveillance and as per preliminary information, they do not have history of any international travel, it said.

Of the 47 patients reported by the Pune-based NIV, 43 are international travellers and four are close contacts, the bulletin added. 

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi, Director Dr Randeep Guleria extended New Year greetings on Wednesday, following which, he urged everyone to continue with COVID appropriate behaviour. 

In a video message,  Dr Randeep Guleria said,  "Let me take this opportunity to wish everyone a very happy, healthy and prosperous 2022. As we move forward, it is important for us to understand that the pandemic is not over, yet we are in a better position. We have a large number of people who are vaccinated, still, we are seeing cases that are now increasing. Therefore it is very important for us to observe COVID appropriate behaviour, wear masks, continue physical distancing, and avoid crowds so that we do not have a super spreader anywhere. 

The AIIMS Director also said that the current data showed that the Omicron variant was mild and did not require too much of medical oxygen. He requested everyone not to unnecessarily waste oxygen cylinders and medicines which had happened earlier this year when the nation was facing an oxygen crisis. Last week, the AIIMS director had said that the COVID-19 vaccines can be "tweaked" to provide protection against new variants of the virus. 

India has recorded 781 cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus across 21 states and UTs so far out of which 241 people have recovered or migrated, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on  Wednesday. Delhi recorded the maximum number of 238 cases followed by Maharashtra at 167, Gujarat 73, Kerala  65 and Telangana 62.

With 9,195 people testing positive for coronavirus infection in a day, India's total tally of COVID-19 cases rose to 3,48,08,886, while the active cases increased to 77,002 , according to the data updated at 8 am.  The death toll has climbed to  4,80,592 with 302 fresh fatalities, the data stated. The daily rise in new coronavirus infections has been recorded below 15,000 for the last 62 days now. The active cases comprise 0.22  per cent of the total infections, the lowest since March 2020, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.40 per cent, the highest since March 2020, the Ministry said.

Predicting a bleak future for global healthcare systems, World Health Organisation (WHO) chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed concerns over what the 'twin threats' of Omicron and Delta would do to the world. Addressing a press conference on Wednesday, the WHO chief warned that the 'tsunami' of COVID cases owing to the highly transmissible Omicron variant could bring healthcare systems to the brink of collapse.

"I am highly concerned that Omicron, being more transmissible, circulating at the same time as Delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference. "This is and will continue to put immense pressure on exhausted health workers, and health systems on the brink of collapse," he said.

Dr Tedros also cautioned that the pressure on healthcare systems would not only be due to rising COVID patients but also large numbers of healthcare workers falling sick after contracting COVID. "The unvaccinated are many times more at risk of dying from either variant," he added.