The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that it expects an increase in the number of hospitalisations and fatalities related to the new Omicron coronavirus strain. The WHO statement came even as Delhi and Rajasthan reported four Omicron cases each on Tuesday. Also, Maharashtra on Tuesday reported eight new Omicron cases of which seven were detected in state capital Mumbai. The health department said the other patient is from Vasai Virar, adding none of the patients had a history of international travel. With this, the state now has a total of 28 patients infected with the new strain. Of the 28 cases in Maharashtra, nine have been discharged after testing negative for the virus.
Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain on Tuesday informed that four new Omicron cases have been detected in the national capital, taking the total number of cases in Delhi to six. Jain added, “Of the six cases, one patient has been discharged from the hospital, while the other five are still admitted and are all stable. None are serious. Currently, 35 Covid-19 positive patients and three suspected cases are admitted to the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) hospital.”
Rajasthan health minister Parsadi Lal Meena said four more Omicron cases have been reported. “The health condition of these patients is stable. All the previous Omicron cases in the state have tested Covid-19 negative now,” Meena said.
Meanwhile, the WHO said in a statement: “As case numbers linked to a variant of concern increase globally, we expect the number of hospitalized cases and even deaths to be reported.” The UN health agency also said that more information is needed to fully understand the clinical picture of those infected with Omicron and WHO encourages countries to contribute to the collection and sharing of hospitalized patient data through the WHO Covid-19 Clinical Data Platform, according to Sputnik. This comes as the WHO last week had shed light on features of Omicron, including the extent to which it will spread, and the number of mutations in the newfound strain.
As far as India is concerned, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Tuesday that over 55% of India’s adult population has received both the doses of Covid-19 vaccine, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Tuesday. According to health ministry officials, 55.52% of the eligible population has been fully vaccinated with 87% people receiving the first dose of the vaccine. In a tweet, Mandaviya said that with over 55% of the eligible population fully vaccinated now, India has achieved another milestone in its fight against Covid. PM Narendra Modii’s ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ campaign has further strengthened the nation’s collective fight against Covid-19. With the administration of 66,98,601 vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India’s Covid-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 133.88 crore, according to provisional reports till 7 am. This has been achieved through 1,40,27,706 sessions, the ministry said.