New Delhi: India witnessed a surge of 656 new Covid-19 infections within a day, resulting in an increase in the active caseload from 3,420 to 3,742, as reported by the Union Health Ministry on Sunday.
Over the last 24 hours, Kerala recorded one death, bringing the nationwide Covid-19 death toll to 5,33,333, with a case fatality rate of 1.18 percent.
Kerala, where the JN.1 Covid sub-variant was first detected, reported the highest daily active cases (126). Other states also experienced a rise in their daily active caseloads, including Karnataka (96), Maharashtra (35), Delhi (16), Telangana (11), and Gujarat (10).
A total of 333 individuals recovered from Covid-19 the previous day, contributing to the total recoveries reaching 4.44 crore (4,44,71,545) and a national recovery rate of 98.81 percent, according to the Health Ministry.
On Saturday, India reported 752 new Covid-19 infections, marking the highest daily count since May 21, along with four deaths, pushing active cases beyond 3,000 to reach 3,420.
The day before, the Health Ministry recorded 640 fresh Covid-19 cases and one death, causing the active caseload to rise from 2,669 to 2,997.
Despite the recent increase in Covid-19 cases, the Central government reassured the public that the current rise is not a cause for alarm and urged people to remain calm. The government recommended individuals with underlying health conditions to continue wearing face masks as a precautionary measure.
As of December 21, India has reported a total of 22 cases of the JN.1 Covid sub-variant, with 19 cases in Goa and one each in Kerala and Maharashtra.
Health officials said, “no clustering of cases due to the JN.1 variant has been observed in India.” All reported cases have been mild, with patients recovering without complications, said the official.