New Covid-19 variants reported in India as cases surge; Delhi issues advisory, Uttarakhand on high alert

In Bengaluru, a nine-month-old baby boy tested positive for Covid-19, health department officials informed on Friday

As Covid-19 cases continue to rise, INSACOG reported on Saturday that India has identified one case of the newly emerging NB.1.8.1 variant and four cases of the LF.7 variant.

Multiple Covid cases have been reported in Delhi, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, among other places, in the last few days. In the national capital alone, 23 coronavirus cases have been reported for the first time in three years, as per a PTI report.

In Bengaluru, a nine-month-old baby boy tested positive for Covid-19, health department officials informed on Friday. Kerala reported 273 cases in May alone.

Advisory, alert issued by Delhi and Uttarakhand:

Amid the surge in cases in various parts of the country, the Delhi government has issued an advisory directing all hospitals to ensure preparedness for the availability of beds, oxygen, medicines, and vaccines.

The advisory urged all health institutions to send positive samples for genome sequencing to Lok Nayak Hospital to facilitate early detection of any new variants.

"In view of the recent increase in Covid-19 cases, it is reiterated that all medical directors, medical superintendents, administrators of all government and private hospitals should ensure hospital preparedness in terms of availability of beds, oxygen, antibiotics and other drugs and vaccines," it said.

However, health minister Pankaj Singh urged people not to panic.

Uttarakhand – where two people tested positive for Covid-19, has sounded a high alert in many districts, stepping up preventive measures.

NB.1.8.1 and LF.7 variants in India

As of May 2025, the World Health Organization (WHO) classifies LF.7 and NB.1.8 subvariants as Variants Under Monitoring, not as Variants of Concern or Variants of Interest. But these are the variants that are reportedly driving the rise in Covid cases in China and parts of Asia.

According to data from the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG), one case of NB.1.8.1 was identified in April in Tamil Nadu and four cases of LF.7 were detected in Gujarat in May.

In India, the most common variant remains JN.1, comprising 53 per cent of samples tested, followed by BA.2 (26 per cent) and other Omicron sublineages (20 per cent).

(With agency inputs)