The Centre said that there is no reason to believe presently on the that they are responsible for the surge in cases in some districts in these two states.
While Karnataka reported five new cases, Delhi and Telangana reported four each, and Gujarat reported one fresh case of the Omicron variant.
The foreign envoys were taken to Hyderabad over a month after the ministry of external affairs briefed over 190 heads of diplomatic missions and representatives of leading international organisations on COVID-19 related issues.
It was on January 30, 2020 when a third-year medical student from Wuhan university tested positive for coronavirus, becoming the country's first COVID-19 patient, days after she had returned home following semester holidays.
The B.1.640.2 variant has been reported by researchers at institute IHU Mediterranee Infection in at least 12 cases, and has been linked to travel to African country Cameroon.
'Antiviral treatment will have no change. Spike protein change may affect the immunity protection.'
A decision on booster dose and Covid jabs for children will be taken on the basis of scientific guidance from experts, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Friday even as India stepped up surveillance for Omicron variant of the coronavirus.
'Scientific data has proven that masks can reduce COVID-91 transmission by 53 per cent...A booster dose of vaccine, even if it works, is just a temporary fix'
State Health Minister Rajesh Tope ordered a probe.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday stressed the need to ensure adequate health infrastructure at the district level and asked officials to maintain coordination regarding this with the states, in view of the prevailing COVID-19 situation.
The leaders of the Quad comprising India, the United States, Australia and Japan are set to demonstrate that the grouping is a 'force for global good' and has a unifying commitment to a rules-based international order amid China's increasingly intimidatory behaviour.
Anurag Agrawal, the Director of the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, said the study on effectiveness of the available vaccines on the B.1.617 variant of SARS-CoV2 suggests that post vaccination, the infections are milder.
He said stringent curbs have been put in place as part of the Graded Response Action Plan for COVID-19 to check the spread of the infection and the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) will decide on implementing more restrictions.
The Corosure Kit has received ICMR approval with the highest score and DCGI approved with a very high sensitivity and specificity.
If booster shots are given on priority, the pace of vaccination may slow further. In the worst case scenario, the country will take till mid-March to vaccinate its entire adult population partially.
The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) in a statement urged world leaders not to implement 'knee-jerk' policy decisions in response to the detection of the Omicron variant.
In the midst of third wave of COVID-19, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has come up with an impactful Budget which is balanced, fiscally prudent and growth-oriented, the USA India Chamber of Commerce has said. President of the Boston-based USA India Chamber of Commerce (USAIC) Karun Rishi, however, said it is a matter of concern that the budget lacks tangible measures to increase revenue generation. "Opting to keep the fiscal deficit at 6.9 per cent and increase capital expenditure by 35 per cent is a masterstroke. "The annual budget estimates the effective capital expenditure of Rs 10.68 lakh crore in 2022-23, making up about 4.1 per cent of the GDP," he said. "A phenomenal increase in the government's capital expenditure is likely to facilitate the expenditures on infrastructure and create jobs.
Researchers have found two new mutations in coronavirus samples from Amravati and Yavatmal districts of eastern Maharashtra which can escape neutralising antibodies, a senior official said on Thrusday. Meanwhile, authorities in the two districts have announced strict implementation of restrictions, including a weekend lockdown in Amravati, to stem the rising cases of COVID-19.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), which monitors data related to the pandemic, said the sub-lineage known as BA.2 shows a low number of cases in the country, with the original Omicron lineage BA.1 still dominant.
Highlighting that mutation in a virus is a natural phenomenon, the civic body said citizens should do not panic and appealed to them to follow COVID-19-appropriate behaviour.
IIT Delhi is the first academic institute to have obtained the ICMR approval for a real-time PCR- based diagnostic assay. The development also comes against the backdrop of the Indian Council of Medical Research halting the testing for COVID-19 cases through China-made test kits because of massive variation in test results, compounding the challenge to check and contain the pandemic.
The New Delhi district authorities on Monday issued a show-cause notice to Etihad Airways for allegedly violating the Centre's guidelines for international passenger arrivals at the IGI airport here, amid concerns over the Omicron variant of coronavirus.
A 'very large' number of Indians are likely to remain protected from Omicron or any other variant of COVID-19 and there is no need to panic, eminent virologist Dr Shahid Jameel has said.
The minister said he was not supposed to say anything officially as he was still in touch with the union health ministry and the ICMR officials.
The Union health ministry, however, suggested necessary curbs in areas reporting over 10 per cent positivity rate or 40 per cent occupancy in either oxygen-supported or ICU beds.
The UK on Saturday detected two cases of the new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, according to health secretary Sajid Javid as he added four more African countries to Britain's travel red list.
The WHO has countries to enhance surveillance and sequencing efforts to better understand circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants, submit complete genome sequences and associated metadata to a publicly available database.
While virologists say theoretically the vaccine that works on Delta should work on the Delta Plus variant as well, more research is needed.
In a letter to Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Telangana, Karnataka and Maharashtra, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan highlighted that a few states were reporting a higher contribution to India's caseload, indicating the possibility of a localised spread of the infection.
Entirely new businesses have been built using data to disrupt traditional companies.
Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba chaired a high-level meet with representatives of states/UTs to also review and discussed the COVID-19 management and response strategy through video conference.
The Centre on Thursday advised states slated to hold assembly polls in the next few months to ramp up COVID vaccination exponentially to protect the vulnerable population given the steady rise in cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus in India.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the challenge of the Covid pandemic is not fully over yet, with the increase in coronavirus cases in the last two weeks manifesting the need to stay alert, and underlined that vaccination remains the biggest protective shield against the virus.
According to SOP, those testing positive will be isolated in a separate unit of an institutional facility.
A man who had arrived from Nigeria and six of his family members who tested Covid-19 positive and their tests had 's' gene dropout were doing well and the officials of Greater Chennai Corporation were involved in monitoring the primary and secondary contacts of his family members, Tamil Nadu Minister Ma Subramanian said on Wednesday.
Eight new cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus were reported in Maharashtra -- seven of them in Mumbai -- and none of the patients had a history of international travel, the state health department said on Tuesday.
According to officials, an additional dose of vaccine is different from a booster dose.
The researchers said D614G has a small but effective change in the 'spike' protein that protrudes from the surface of the virus, which it uses to enter and infect human cells.
The researchers, including those from the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) in Hyderabad, advise testing asymptomatic primary and secondary contacts followed by surveillance.
Tope's comments came a day after the Centre asked the state to align its order with the SOPs issued by the Union health ministry.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances