COVID JN.1 Variant: 263 Cases Detected In Ten States Across India So Far
The INSACOG, under the Union Health Ministry, has said that a total of 263 cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 have been detected in the country so far.
According to the data from the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Consortium on Genomics (INSACOG), ten states and Union territories have so far detected the presence of the JN.1 sub-variant of the virus.
Half of the cases in Kerala
Out of the 263 cases, about half of them were recorded in Kerala,(133), followed by Goa (51), Gujarat (34), Delhi (16), Karnataka (eight), Maharashtra (nine), Rajasthan (five), Tamil Nadu (four), Telangana (two) and Odisha (one).
The INSACOG's data showed 239 COVID cases recorded in the country in December had the presence of JN.1, while 24 such cases were detected in November.
The first case of JN.1 in India was a 79-year-old woman from Kerala, who tested positive for COVID-19 in November.
JN.1 a variant of interest: WHO
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has classified JN.1 as a separate "variant of interest" given its rapidly increasing spread but said it poses a "low" global public health risk.
The JN.1 sub-variant of the coronavirus was previously classified as a variant of interest (VOI) as part of the BA.2.86 sub-lineages, the parent lineage that is classified as a VOI, the world body said.
However, in recent weeks, JN.1 cases have continued to be reported from multiple countries, and its prevalence has rapidly increased globally.
The Centre has asked the states and Union territories to maintain constant vigilance amid an uptick in the number of COVID-19 cases and the detection of the JN.1 sub-variant in the country.
COVID-19 cases in India
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, India recorded 573 new COVID-19 infections in the past 24 hours, taking the number of active cases to 4,565.
According to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, two COVID-19 deaths were reported in the country in the past 24 hours, one each from Haryana and Karnataka.
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