Eleven COVID-19 Omicron sub-variants have been found in international passengers between December 24 and January 3 during testing at international airports and sea ports, reported ANI, citing official sources. A total of 19,227 samples have been tested out of which 124 international travellers were found positive and were isolated, they added.
Of the 124 positive samples, genome sequencing results of 40 were received of which XBB including XBB.1 was found in the maximum 14 samples, and BF 7.4.1 has been found in one sample, the sources said.
The Union Health ministry on Thursday said that India recorded 188 new coronavirus infections, while the active cases have declined to 2,554. The total tally of Covid cases has been recorded at 4,46,79,319 and the toll stood at 5,30,710, the data updated at 8 AM showed.
The daily positivity has been recorded at 0.10 per cent while the weekly positivity has been pegged at 0.12 per cent. The active cases comprise 0.01 per cent of the total infections, while the national recovery rate has increased to 98.80 per cent, according to the health ministry’s website.
Meanwhile, amid the covid-19 surge across many countries, India’s travel guidelines have made RT-PCR test mandatory from January 1 for people coming in from China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Thailand.
Several private and government hospitals across India on December 27 conducted mock drills to check preparedness of facilities to deal with any spurt in COVID-19 cases. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who oversaw the drill at the Centre-run Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi, had said important to gauge operational readiness of equipment and human resources.
The Centre has asked states and union territories to conduct the drill as part of precautionary measures following the surge in coronavirus cases, across the globe, including China.