Here are the latest updates about the new coronavirus variant:

  • The Centre has asked Karnataka, Odisha, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Mizoram to take necessary steps to control the spread of Covid-19 as they have been experiencing a surge in cases over the last two weeks, India Today reported. Karnataka had on Friday reported the first two cases of the Omicron variant in India. 
  • On Saturday, India reported two more cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, PTI reported. In Maharashtra, a 33-year-old man in Kalyan Dombivli town near Mumbai tested positive for the Omicron variant. He had developed mild symptoms upon returning from South Africa on November 24. In Gujarat, a 72-year-old man had tested positive for the virus on Thursday in Gujarat’s Jamnagar city following which his samples were sent for genomic sequencing. He had returned from Zimbabwe, which has been designated as an “at risk” country in India due its close proximity to South Africa where the variant was first reported.  
  • The Gujarat patient has been isolated and is being monitored, ANI reported. “A micro containment zone has been made where he is living,” said Manoj Agarwal, the additional chief secretary of Gujarat’s health department. “In the area, we will do the tracing, testing of people.” 
  • The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai issued a set of guidelines for monitoring international travellers after they arrive at the Maharashtra capital. The guidelines stated that 24 “ward war rooms” have been set up in the city, whose officials will monitor the health of those in home quarantine at least five times a day over phone. The ward war rooms will regularly send medical teams with ambulances to check whether the travellers are following protocols. On the seventh day of home quarantine, the ward war rooms will ensure that the travellers undergo an RT-PCR test.
  • Virologist Gagandeep Kang said that lockdowns and travel bans make no sense in dealing with the Omicron variant, The News Minute reported. She added that people should be tested for the virus before and after travel. Kang said this testing strategy would slow down the entry of new variants in India.
  • Twelve persons who arrived in Delhi from “at risk” countries have been admitted to the Lok Nayak Hospital, The Indian Express quoted a senior hospital official as saying. The official said that eight of them have tested positive for Covid-19, while four have symptoms such as sore throat, fever and history of contact with patients. Earlier this week, the Delhi government had designated the hospital for treatment of patients infected by the new variant. However, it has not yet been confirmed if the eight patients who tested positive have contracted the Omicron strain.
  • The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health has recommended that the efficacy of coronavirus vaccines should be evaluated in light of the new variant, PTI reported. The panel said that concerns about the Omicron variant having the ability to evade the immune system should be critically addressed.  The health ministry had on Friday said there is no evidence to suggest that the existing vaccines do not work on Omicron variant. It added that the severity of the new variant in India could be low because of the pace of vaccination. 
  • The World Health Organization said on Friday that cases of the Omicron variant have been detected in 38 countries till now, but no deaths have yet been reported due to the new strain, AFP reported. Mexico reported its first Omicron case on Friday. Canada has also reported 15 cases of the variant, according to Reuters. A child below the age of 12 is one of the patients. 
  • The West Bengal government has directed that travellers from countries affected by the Omicron variant will need to stay in isolation for seven days in isolation after arriving in the state, PTI reported. Air travellers from other parts of the country will have to furnish RT-PCR negative reports.
  • A woman who came to India from South Africa has been booked for violating home quarantine rules, ANI quoted Chandigarh Health Secretary Yashpal Garg as saying. The official said that the woman’s initial RT-PCR test showed a negative result. She allegedly broke home quarantine protocol and checked into a hotel on December 2. She is scheduled to get tested again on December 8, the official said.