Coronavirus Omicron India Highlights: 132 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in India so far

Health officials in Japan have confirmed eight more cases of the new omicron variant of the coronavirus, bringing the country's total to 12, the government said Friday. The eight tested positive for the virus when they arrived at Japanese airports from late November to earlier this month, the health ministry said in a statement. Two of them, a woman in her 30s and a boy, arrived from Namibia on Nov. 28 on the same flight as a Namibian diplomat who was Japan's first confirmed case of the omicron variant, Chief Cabinet Secretary Seiji Kihara said.

Maharashtra reported seven new cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus on Friday including a three-and-half-year-old girl, which took the tally of such infections to 17, the state health department said. Overall, Maharashtra recorded 695 new coronavirus cases during the day. Three new Omicron cases were found in the state capital Mumbai.

Switzerland may have to impose another limited lockdown to break the momentum of rising coronavirus cases that threaten to overwhelm its healthcare system, the government said on Friday.

“This is really a critical phase. The trends are going in the wrong direction,” Health Minister Alain Berset told reporters in Bern as the cabinet launched consultations with regional authorities and social partners on the way forward.

A contact of an Omicron case in Rajasthan has been found COVID-19 positive in Delhi and she has been admitted to the Lok Nayak Hospital, officials said on Friday.

The woman tested Covid positive on Thursday, is asymptomatic and stable. She did not travel to any foreign country, officials said. According to an official, 17 members of her family have been also put under home quarantine.

She was taken to the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital and her sample has been sent for genomic sequencing to the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the official said, adding her contacts are being traced. The LNJP has been designated for the treatment of patients infected with the Omicron variant of coronavirus.

India’s COVID-19 vaccination coverage has reached nearly 132 crore (131,90,73,072) today. Over 68 lakh (68,63,955) vaccine doses administered till 7 pm today: Ministry of Health

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is not planning further restrictions in England to contain the significant growth of the Omicron coronavirus variant, his spokesman said on Friday, as Scotland warned the variant could become dominant within days.

While there are currently 817 genomically confirmed cases of Omicron in the United Kingdom, health minister Sajid Javid has said it is spreading in the community, and on Wednesday estimated the number of Omicron infections as closer to 10,000. Britain has reported more than 50,000 daily COVID-19 infections overall for three of the last four days.

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) will celebrate supremo Sharad Pawar's birthday in the presence of a select few and he will accept greetings through a virtual rally this year given the COVID-19 situation amid the Omicron scare, Maharashtra minister and party colleague Jayant Patil said on December 10. Pawar will turn 81 on December 12 and the party has organised an event in Nehru Centre in Worli here to mark the day.

Addressing reporters, Maharashtra NCP chief Patil said party workers as well common citizens should not turn up to greet Pawar at the centre in view of Omicron variant scare. Given the COVID-19 situation, (Pawar) saheb will accept people's greetings through a virtual rally this year. The rally will be streamed on the party's official Facebook page and YouTube channel. An app will also be launched that day to strengthen the coordination between the party organisation and its workers," he added.

Maharashtra reports seven new cases of Omicron – three from Mumbai and four from Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation; total Omicron cases in the state at 17 now: Maharashtra Health Department

A woman, who returned from the UK, tested positive for COVID-19 here on Friday, a senior official of the West Bengal Health Department said on Friday. The required specimens were collected and sent for genome sequencing to ascertain whether she had contracted the new omicron variant, which has been classified as a highly transmissible virus of concern, he said.

“A patient from the UK is found positive for COVID-19. She was initially sent to the Beliaghata IDBG Hospital Later she chose to get admitted to a private hospital for institutional quarantine, the official said. Her condition is stable, he added. Her condition is stable,” he added.

Realtors body CREDAI on Friday said that there has been no impact of the new Omicron variant on the property market so far and growth in sales volumes is likely to continue. "There has been no significant impact of the new Omicron variant on India's realty market and the growth momentum post festive sales is expected to continue," CREDAI said in a statement.

Surveillance, effective screening, monitoring of international travellers and health infrastructure upgradation is being done. States have been notified to increase their surveillance and actively test passengers arriving from other countries: Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secy

WHO highlighted that public health measures should be abided by on a continual basis, besides vaccination. Adequate precautions have to be followed...Laxity in public health measures leading to a surge in cases in Europe: Lav Agarwal, Joint Secy, Union Health Ministry

Regular meetings are being organised to keep a watch on global scenario and Covid scene in India with a focus on Omicron. We need help to not spread panic. District level restrictions to be implemented where positivity over 5%: Balram Bhargava, DG, ICMR