India records 309 new Omicron cases in a day, active COVID cases surge to 91,000

India recorded 309 cases of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in a day, the highest single-day rise so far, taking the country’s total Omicron tally to 1,270.

India also recorded 16,764 fresh COVID-19 cases and 220 more fatalities due to the viral disease, according to Union Health Ministry’s data released on Friday at 8 am.

Bihar became the latest state to report its first case of Omicron on Friday.

Senior doctors in Delhi have warned that though the data collected so far suggests that the Omicron variant causes mild infection, there is a need to remain watchful as community spread can still strain hospitals.

Of the 1,270 patients infected with the Omicron variant, 374 have either recuperated or migrated, according to the ministry’s data.

Of the 23 states and Union Territories that have recorded Omicron cases so far, Maharashtra has registered the highest number of 450, followed by Delhi (320), Kerala (109), and Gujarat (97).

Also read: COVID third wave started in Mumbai, Delhi: Task Force member

The daily rise in the number of coronavirus cases crossed the 16,000 mark after 64 days, taking the country’s COVID-19 tally to 3,48,38,804, while the number of active cases has gone up to 91,361.

The death toll due to the viral disease has climbed to 4,81,080 with 220 more fatalities, the data stated.

The country had witnessed 16,156 fresh coronavirus cases last on October 27.

“The 91,361 active COVID-19 cases account for 0.26 per cent of the total caseload, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.36 per cent,” the ministry said.

An increase of 8,959 cases was recorded in the active COVID-19 tally in a span of 24 hours.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 1.34 per cent. It has remained below two per cent for 88 days now.

The weekly positivity rate was recorded at 0.89 per cent. It has remained below one per cent for 47 days now.

The number of patients who have recuperated has gone up to 3,42,66,363, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.38 per cent.

The cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country so far has exceeded 144.54 crore.

India’s COVID-19 tally crossed the one-crore mark on December 19 last year. The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore coronavirus cases on May 4 this year and the three-crore mark on June 23.

The 220 new fatalities include 164 from Kerala and 22 from Maharashtra.

Also read: Molnupiravir treatment for COVID to cost approx. ₹3,000 per patient

Of the 4,81,080 COVID-19 deaths reported so far in the country, 1,41,518 are from Maharashtra, 47,441 from Kerala, 38,327 from Karnataka, 36,765 from Tamil Nadu, 25,107 from Delhi, 22,915 from Uttar Pradesh, and 19,757 from West Bengal.

The Health Ministry stressed that more than 70 per cent of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities.

(With inputs from Agencies)