COVID-19: India's Omicron tally reaches 781, most in Delhi
India's tally of COVID-19 cases involving the Omicron variant reached 781 on Wednesday, the Union Health Ministry said. Delhi topped the list of worst-hit states with 238 cases, followed by Maharashtra (167 cases). Overall, India reported nearly 9,200 COVID-19 cases on Wednesday. The active caseload is just over 77,000, accounting for 0.22% of the total cases. Currently, India's recovery rate stands at 98.40%.
Why does it matter?
India on Wednesday reported 44% higher COVID-19 cases than the day before. Notably, both Kerala and Maharashtra contributed the majority of daily infections on Wednesday. Meanwhile, India's Omicron tally is rising at an alarming rate. It currently stands at 781. The World Health Organization on Wednesday warned countries of the threat posed by the Omicron variant.
Over 7K patients discharged
According to the Union Health Ministry, India reported a total of 3,48,08,886 COVID-19 cases till Wednesday morning. The death toll reached 4,80,592. With 7,347 fresh discharges, India's recoveries stand at 3,42,51,292. In the past 24 hours, 9,195 new cases and 302 fresh fatalities were reported. The weekly positivity rate was recorded at 0.68%. It has remained under 1% the last 45 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, Maharashtra adds most new cases
Maharashtra reported 2,172 new COVID-19 cases along with 1,098 more recoveries. Kerala, the second worst-hit state after Maharashtra, reported 2,474 new cases and 3,052 discharges. The third worst-hit Karnataka added 356 new cases and 347 recoveries. Tamil Nadu, the fourth worst-hit state, reported 619 new cases and 638 recoveries. Andhra Pradesh reported 141 new cases and 165 recoveries.
Over 143 crore vaccine doses administered
Till 2 pm on Wednesday, India had administered over 143.5 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses. Overall, nearly 59.3 crore people have been fully vaccinated, while over 84.2 crore people have received at least one dose. On Wednesday alone, India administered over 34.5 lakh more COVID-19 vaccine doses till 2 pm, including over 27 lakh second doses and over 7.5 lakh first doses, according to Co-WIN.
States worst-hit by Omicron
The Omicron variant of coronavirus has, so far, been detected in 21 states and union territories of India. The worst-affected regions include Delhi (238 Omicron cases) Maharashtra (167), Gujarat (73), Kerala (65), Telangana (62), Rajasthan (46), Karnataka (34), and Tamil Nadu (34).
Omicron risk remains 'very high': WHO
The risk posed by the Omicron variant is very high and could overwhelm healthcare systems, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday. "Consistent evidence shows that the Omicron variant has a growth advantage over the Delta variant with a doubling time of two to three days," the world body said. Notably, Omicron cases have shot up 11% globally in the last week.
