Uttarakhand reports two COVID-19 cases
Jan 01, 2024
Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], January 1 : Uttarakhand has reported two COVID-19 cases, said authorities.
A 77-year-old man admitted to Max Hospital, Dehradun came positive on Saturday, while the corona report of a 72-year-old female patient came positive on Sunday.
To identify the new variant of Covid, JN.1, samples of both infected patients have been sent for genome sequencing. The state health secretary, R Rajesh Kumar said that the health department team is in constant touch with both the patients and their families.
The World Health Organisation (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.
As the new year rings in, both the central and state governments are keeping a close watch on the new Omicron Subvariant JN.1.
JN.1 is a Variant of Interest (VOI) that is under intense scientific scrutiny. As of December 16, the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported 7,344 cases of the COVID-19 JN.1 subvariant from 41 countries.
The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) of Delhi has issued guidelines for COVID-19 suspected or positive cases that will be reported at hospitals following the sudden surge in the cases of coronavirus in the country.
Meanwhile, the Health Department of Himachal Pradesh held a meeting on Monday to review the COVID situation across the state.
The Chief Medical Officers of all the districts have been instructed to examine cases of respiratory illnesses.
"Keeping in mind the festive season, the Chief Medical Officers in all the districts have been instructed to examine cases of influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infections (SARI). The state has witnessed only two COVID-19 cases during the last 10 days," said the Health Secretary in an official statement.
"As per the directions of the central government, a COVID drill was organised across the district health institutions in the state, which went from December 13 to 17. The state's first INSACOG lab has been established in the Mandi Medical College, affiliated with the Central Government, where any variant of the coronavirus can be detected using genome sequencing," added the release.
