COVID-19 Surge in India: 754 Fresh Cases in 1 Day

Fresh COVID-19 Variant Raises Concerns

A descendant of the XBB.1 variant, researchers have tracked a new XBB.1.16 variant of SARS-CoV2. The new variant has already seen a surge in other countries including Singapore, China, the United States and Brunei.

This XBB.1.16 variant has shown a high prevalence in Gujarat Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, with two COVID-19 fatalities in Maharashtra, one in Uttarakhand and two in Karnataka.

As per Dr. Vipin M Vashishtha, the new strain has raised some concerns due to certain mutations in the non-spike region of the virus, which may harm a person's immunity. Dr. Vashishtha is a member of WHO's Vaccine Safety Net and has been tracking new COVID variants since the pandemic.

With active vaccination drives and vigilance, the coronavirus recovery rate in India is 98.80% as per the health ministry website.

Due to rising COVID-19 as well as the seasonal H3N2 influenza cases in India, doctors and health experts have recommended vigilance and proper precaution to avoid exposure to these pathogens.

The centre has requested different Indian states and Union Territories to assess their vaccination coverage, track the respiratory pathogens as well as their hospital preparedness against COVID-19 and influenza.