India recorded 4,041 fresh Covid-19 cases on Friday, the highest in 84 days, while the number of active cases across the country rose on the 11th day in a row.
Officials in the Union health ministry, however, maintained that there is no reason to panic yet as there is no change in the hospitalisation pattern and most infections are only mildly symptomatic.
A look at the data shared by the ministry shows that the active cases in the country has now gone to 21, 177 - marking a rise of 1,668 in the last 24 hours. This is the highest rise in active cases in 130 days in India.
This is for the first time in 24 days that the number of countrywide active cases has gone above the 20,000 mark.
BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants at play
The Indian SARS CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG), in its May 21 bulletin had confirmed the presence of Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 only in three samples that had undergone whole genome sequencing.
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Scientists attached with the project, however, conceded that these subvariants—known for their rapid transmission and immune evasive properties—may be driving the surge in cases. These subvariants, after first driving a fresh wave of infections in South Africa, have now spread globally.
A senior official in the health ministry too agreed.
“It does seem like these strains have a role to play in the current rise in cases and most of the people testing Covid positive are examples of breakthrough infections,” he said.
“Symptoms getting reported are mostly mild with a majority showing only upper respiratory infection with mild or no fever,” the official pointed out.
Another official said that despite no change in the hospitalisation pattern, the Centre was in constant touch with states.
“With a rise in cases, it cannot be denied that some people, mostly elderly and those with serious co-morbidities, may land up in hospitals even if a majority recover at home with simple or no medical intervention,” this official said.
An INSACOG scientist said that it is possible that the cases getting identified could only be the tip of the iceberg.
“The number of people seeking test in laboratories is not high and many people may be using home rapid antigen test,” the scientist said. “As results from these home tests mostly do not get recorded, the actual load of infections is likely to be much higher.”
Kerala and Maharashtra leading the surge
The consolidated data by the Union government shows that even though 24 states and Union Territories on Friday recorded the rise in Covid-19 cases, the highest daily rise was from Kerala and Maharashtra.
Kerala also has the highest load of Covid-19 cases, followed by Maharashtra.
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While Kerala reported 1,370 new cases in a day, this number was 1,045 in case of Maharashtra.
Within Maharashtra, the surge as of now is largely driven by Mumbai which registered more than 700 new cases on Thursday, the highest in four months, while the daily Covid-19 test positivity rate raced past 8 percent.
Delhi, meanwhile, also sees an increase in cases and recorded 373 new cases in the last 24 hours.
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