Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a meeting with chief ministers over the Covid-19 situation in the country on Thursday as the number of virus infections sees a huge surge due to the Omicron variant. India recorded 1,68,063 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed on Tuesday. Compared to Monday, the total number of fresh Covid cases is down by 11,660. India had reported 1,79,723 cases on Monday. A total of 4,461 cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus have been reported so far.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday called Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to enquire about his health condition after the latter tested Covid-19 positive. PM Modi wished him a speedy recovery from the coronavirus infection over the conversation. The Prime Minister also enquired about the health of veteran singer Lata Mangeshkar, 92, who was hospitalised after testing positive for Covid-19. The veteran singer was admitted to Mumbai’s Breach Candy hospital on Monday. “Didi is admitted to ICU after she was diagnosed with Covid-19. Dr Pratik Samdani is treating her and he says that there is nothing serious but she needs to be kept in ICU for precautionary reasons seeing her age. We hope she will recover soon. Please respect our privacy and keep didi in your prayers,” Mangeshkar’s niece Rachna said.
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari also tested positive for Covid-19 and is currently under home quarantine. A technical advisory group established by the World Health Organization said on Tuesday that current
Covid-19 vaccines may need to be updated to ensure they are effective against new variants like Omicron. “…the composition of current Covid-19 vaccines may need to be updated, to ensure that Covid-19 vaccines continue to provide WHO-recommended levels of protection against infection and disease by VOCs, including Omicron and future variants,” the body of independent experts said in a statement sent to journalists by the WHO.
Amid a surge in Covid-19 cases in the national capital, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has directed that all private offices shall be closed except those that come under the exempted category. Private banks, insurance companies, courier services, non-banking financial corporations and companies providing essential services will remain open. Earlier, the private offices were working with 50% of workforce. The DDMA has also ordered that the dine-in service in restaurants and bars will be discontinued in the national capital. Earlier, the eateries and bars in the capital were allowed to run with 50% capacity to curb the spread of coronavirus. Delhi reported 21,259 new Covid-19 during the past 24 hours with a positivity rate of 25.65%, the highest since 5 May last year, informed the state health bulletin on Tuesday. In the past 24 hours, Delhi also reported 23 deaths, taking the total number of fatalities to 25,200 here.
The Delhi government will launch online yoga and meditation classes for Covid-19 patients in home isolation from Wednesday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Tuesday. Under the initiative, each Covid patient will be sent a link to register for yoga classes. From Wednesday, trained instructors will conduct hour-long classes in the morning and evening, he said. Each class will comprise 15 patients.
Meanwhile, the ICMR’s National Task Force for Covid-19 has decided against including antiviral drug Molnupiravir in the Clinical Management Protocol for Covid-19 as of now, official sources said on Tuesday. The experts of the task force cited safety concerns and argued that Molnupiravir was not of much benefit in Covid treatment to arrive at the decision in a meeting held on Monday. According to the Health Ministry, Molnupiravir is an antiviral drug that inhibits SARS-CoV-2 replication by viral mutagenesis. This anti-Covid pill got the Drug Regulator General of India’s approval on 28 December for restricted use in emergencies. Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) chief Dr Balram Bhargava had last week said that Molnupiravir has major safety concerns. He added that WHO and the UK have not included it for treatment.
A report from Haridwar said that the Haridwar administration has banned devotees from taking a holy dip in the Ganga river on ‘Makar Sankranti’ i.e., 14 January. “There will be a complete ban on Makar Sakranti celebration/holy dip on 14 January in view of a new variant of Covid-19 i.e., Omicron,” the District Magistrate’s order states. Even, residents of the district will not be allowed in the area of “Har ki Podi” on the day of the festival. “Night Curfew will also be imposed from 10 pm to 6 am in the district (on Friday),” reads the order.
A report from Mumbai said as many as 30 prisoners tested positive for Covid-19 at Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai, said officials on Tuesday. Mumbai on Tuesday reported 11,647 fresh Covid-19 cases, a drop of 2,001 from the previous day, taking the tally to 9,39,867, the BMC said. Two patients succumbed to the infection in the past 24 hours.