A total of 656 cases of Covid-19 subvariant JN.1 and one death have been reported in the country for the past 24 hours, according to data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
The total number of active cases of Covid-19 in the country was recorded at 3,742.
Earlier on Saturday, a multi-fold spurt in fresh COVID cases was noted in India, with Kerala contributing the majority of those.
A total of 423 cases were reported, of which 266 were from Kerala and 70 from neighbouring Karnataka, Union health ministry data showed.
Two deaths were reported in Kerala.
Meanwhile, former AIIMS director and senior pulmonologist, Dr Randeep Guleria said that the new subvariant of COVID is not causing severe infections and hospitalisation.
“It is more transmissible, it is spreading more rapidly, and it is gradually becoming a dominant variant. It is causing more infections but the data also suggests that it is not causing severe infections or hospitalisations. Most of the symptoms are predominantly in the upper airways, like fever, cough, cold, sore throat, running nose and body aches,” Dr Guleria said.
Earlier, India SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) chief Dr NK Arora also said that no additional dose of vaccine is needed against the subvariant at present.
Dr Arora further said, “I would say prevention is required for all those who are 60 years of age or older, who are likely to have comorbidities and those who are on drugs that suppress our immunity, like cancer patients. If they have not taken precaution so far, then they are advised to take precaution; otherwise, there is no need for any additional doses.”
The INSACOG chief asserted that various subvariants of Omicron have been reported but none of them have increased severity.
He reiterated the fact that there is no need for panic but that it requires vigilance. “I would like to assure everybody that we need to be vigilant, but not panicky at all,” he added.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently classified JN.1 as a variant of interest, distinct from its parent lineage BA.2.86. However, the global health body emphasised that the overall risk posed by JN.1 remains low based on current evidence.
Due to its rapidly increasing spread, WHO is classifying the variant JN.1 as a separate variant of interest (VOI) from the parent lineage BA.2.86.
It was previously classified as VOI as part of BA.2.86 sublineages.