Amid Omicron scare, Delhi govt to send all positive samples for genome sequencing

With Delhi adding two new cases of the Omicron variant to its tally, and logging 107 daily infections, the highest in six months, on Monday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has urged the Centre to introduce booster shots to achieve increased immunity among residents.

“I urge the Centre to allow citizens to take booster dose of COVID-19 vaccine for increased immunity against the virus. Delhi government has the infrastructure to conduct booster dose drives,” Kejriwal said at a press briefing.

In view of the rising cases, the government after a meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has decided to send samples of all COVID positive cases for genome sequencing. So far, genome sequencing was only being conducted on the samples of travellers from ‘at-risk’ countries.

Delhi’s Omicron tally reached 24 after two more cases were reported. Half of the infected patients have already been treated and discharged while the rest 12 are under treatment.

The chief minister will hold another meeting on December 23 to take stock of the situation and delineate home isolation norms for positive patients.

Also read: India’s Omicron tally at 163; active COVID cases drop to 82,267

At Monday’s meeting, Kejriwal asked the public not panic and said despite Omicron’s high transmissibility, it has been said to have mild symptoms, with most of the affected patient not requiring hospitalization.

He, however, said that the government will take every measure to ensure the wellbeing of Delhi’s residents, while asking the public to follow COVID protocols such as wearing masks in public.

The government has also extended its free ration service for six months, till May 31, 2022.