Fri. Mar 29th, 2024
Worker during the COVID-19 pandemic. ||Representational Image: APWorker during the COVID-19 pandemic. ||Representational Image: AP

New Delhi: After registering the lowest number of daily Coronavirus cases in nearly six months, India on Wednesday recorded 23,950 fresh cases of the novel coronavirus. However, this was the lowest after 173 days.

Now that tally has risen to 10,099066. The total active cases stand at 2,89,240 and with 26,895 new recoveries, the total recoveries have gone up to 96,63,382. India reported 333 new deaths in the last 24 hours and the death toll has risen to 1,46,444. The total number of tests done during the previous day were 10,98,164.

The health ministry on Tuesday issued a new SOP

The Union Health and Welfare Ministry on Tuesday circulated standards of procedures (SOPs) for passengers arriving from the United Kingdom (UK) to India amid the detection of a new strain of the coronavirus in the UK.

According to SOP, “A new variant of SARS- CoV 2 virus [Variant Under Investigation (VUI)-20212/01] has been reported by the Government of the United Kingdom (UK) to the World Health Organization (WHO). This
a variant is estimated by the European Center for Disease Control (ECDC) to be more transmissible and affecting the younger population.”

Kerala, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh have reported the maximum number of cases, as per data of Union Health and Welfare Ministry.

Rajesh Bhushan, Health Secretary on Tuesday said, “India continues to be among nations with the lowest COVID-19 cases per million population and the lowest deaths per million population. New Covid cases, as well as new Covid cases deaths per million population reported in the last 7 days, are also among the lowest. Average daily new cases have shown a continuous decline from 46,301 during the first week of November to 24,135 this week. Average daily deaths have also come down from 556 during the first week of November to 343 this week. Total active Covid -19 cases are less than 3% and India’s recovery rate is more than 95%,” reported Hindustan Times.

He said about a new strain of Coronavirus detected in the United Kingdom (UK), “There is no need to panic. We are yet to spot such a virus in our country for which there are intensive efforts in the offing. This virus increases infectiousness but does not increase the propensity for death or hospitalization or severity of the disease. The mutation is a very common behavior in viruses. The current mutation says that 17 mutations have happened all at once. Its tendency to enter our cell has become higher. Transmissibility has increased with this mutation.”