COVID-19: India reports 7K+ infections; 202 more deaths
India on Monday reported over 7,000 new COVID-19 cases with an active caseload of over 91,000, the lowest in 561 days. Active cases now account for just 0.26% of the total cases, the lowest since March 2020. The recovery rate was recorded at 98.37%. Meanwhile, India's daily positivity rate was recorded at 0.86%. It has been under 2% for the last 70 days.
Why does it matter?
India on Monday reported marginally fewer COVID-19 cases than the day before. India's positive trend is also reflected in its weekly positivity rate and active caseload, which have recorded a steady decline in the last few weeks. However, concerns have risen as India has reported 38 cases involving the Omicron variant, the most heavily mutated strain of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2.
Nearly 8K patients discharged
According to the Union Health Ministry, India reported a total of 3,46,97,860 COVID-19 cases till Monday morning. The death toll reached 4,75,636. With 7,973 fresh discharges, India's recoveries stand at 3,41,30,768. In the past 24 hours, 7,350 new cases and 202 fresh fatalities were reported. The weekly positivity rate was recorded at 0.69%. It has remained under 1% the last 29 days.
India's second wave peaked on May 7
India's second wave peaked on May 7, when 4.14 lakh single-day cases were reported, over four times the number of cases reported during the first wave in mid-September 2020. Although infections have declined since the second wave peaked, India crossed the three crore-mark on June 23. India had crossed the one crore-mark on December 19, 2020, and the 2 crore-mark on May 4, 2021.
Kerala adds majority of cases
Maharashtra reported 704 new COVID-19 cases along with 699 more recoveries. Kerala, the second worst-hit state after Maharashtra, reported 3,777 new cases and 3,856 discharges. The third worst-hit Karnataka added 330 new cases and 304 recoveries. Tamil Nadu, the fourth worst-hit state, reported 674 new cases and 708 recoveries. Andhra Pradesh reported 160 new cases and 201 recoveries.
Over 133 crore vaccine doses administered
Till 1:30 pm on Monday, India had administered over 133.3 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses. Overall, over 51.5 crore people have been fully vaccinated, while over 81.7 crore people have received at least one dose. On Monday alone, India administered nearly 30.8 lakh more COVID-19 vaccine doses till 1:30 pm, including nearly 23 lakh second doses and over 7.8 lakh first doses, according to CoWIN.
Omicron spreads faster than Delta: WHO
The Omicron variant is more transmissible than the Delta variant, said the World Health Organization, citing early research data. According to the world body, Omicron also reduces the efficacy of vaccines. However, it causes less severe symptoms than the Delta variant, the WHO added. Thus far, the variant has spread to at least 63 countries.
