Here are the latest updates on the new coronavirus variant:

  • The Union government on Wednesday acknowledged the death of an elderly person as a fatality with the Omicron infection. The 72-year-old man died in Rajasthan’s Udaipur on December 31. Lav Agarwal, the joint secretary in the Union health ministry, said that the person had severe diabetes and co-morbid conditions. Last week, Maharashtra had confirmed the presence of Omicron in a man who died of a heart attack in Pimpri Chinchwad in Pune district, The Times of India reported. The state government had not, however, referred to him as the first death due to the variant and attributed the fatality to underlying health conditions.
  • More than 50 persons have tested positive for Covid-19 at the Indian Institute of Technology-Guwahati since December 31, PTI reported. A faculty member and five of his relatives, as well as another staff member, are among those who tested positive, Parmeshwar Iyer, Dean-Public Relations told the agency. The rest of those who tested positive for the disease are students.
  • A total of 61 resident doctors at Mumbai’s JJ Hospital have tested positive for Covid-19, ANI quoted the Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors. On Tuesday, Mumbai registered 10,860 new Covid-19 cases and the number of active infections was 47,476.
  • Twenty-one medical students at the Vijayanagar Institute of Medical Sciences in Karnataka’s Ballari district have tested positive for Covid-19, PTI reported on Wednesday. T Gangadhargowda, the director of the institute, said that they have been taken to the district hospital for treatment. The cases were detected after random tests were carried out among 250 students of a hostel.
  • Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Wednesday that there was no immediate need to impose a complete lockdown in the state, The Hindu reported. “However, the challenge at the moment is to make sure that the restrictions already announced be implemented properly,” he said.
  • Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar said that the current wave of Covid-19 will not be for two long, and that the next four to six weeks are crucial, PTI reported. He urged citizens to follow guidelines and containment measures laid down by the government.
  • The 27th Kolkata International Film Festival has been cancelled in the wake of the rising Covid-19 cases in West Bengal, ANI reported. The festival was slated to be held from January 7 to 14.
  • Odisha on Wednesday reported 1,216 new coronavirus cases, the highest figure in five months, according to the Hindustan Times. The new cases are nearly double the figure of 680 from the previous day. Two more deaths were reported due to the disease in the state.
  • Indian Council of Medical Research chief Balram Bhargava said on Wednesday that an RT-PCR kit for detecting the Omicron variant has been developed in India  by the ICMR in partnership with Tata MD, ANI reported. The kit has received the approval of the Drugs Controller General of India, Bhargava said.
  • The Omicron variant is the predominant strain circulating in cities in the country, Balram Bhargava said during a press conference on Wednesday, according to ANI. The Union health ministry has said that 2,135 cases of the variant have been reported in the country till now.