COVID-19 updates: India active caseload hits 2,669; Centre directs states to conduct mock drills every 3 months

COVID-19 news: India on Thursday reported a rise in COVID-19 cases as the country's active caseload surged to 2,669 with 358 fresh cases logged in the last 24 hours. Of this, 300 new active cases were reported from Kerala on Wednesday. Other states that reported fresh cases are Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra.

The COVID-19 death toll across India stood at 5,33,327 with three deaths from Kerala in a span of 24 hours. The number of people who have recovered from the illness stand at more than 4.44 crore and the national recovery rate stood at 98.81 per cent, as per the data from the Union Health Ministry.

India on Wednesday reported its highest surge in COVID-19 cases since May 21. The country recorded 614 fresh infections on Tuesday. The death toll was recorded at 5,33,321 with three deaths reported from Kerala. The continuous surge in COVID-19 cases can be attributed to the Omicron sub-variant JN.1 first detected in Kerala.

Given the recent spurt in coronavirus cases and deaths in some parts of India, the Union Health Ministry held a review meeting on Wednesday. Chaired by Mansukh Mandaviya, this meeting was also attended by Union Ministers SP Singh Baghel, Bharati Pravin Pawar, Health Secretary Sudhansh Pant, Secretary Department of Health Research Dr Rajiv Bahl and Dr VK Paul, Member, (Health), NITI Aayog.

During the meeting, Mandaviya said that it was important to be on alert and be prepared against new and emerging strains of the coronavirus. He also reiterated the need for joint efforts coordination between Centre and states to ensure efficient management of coronavirus.

Besides this, the Union Health Minister urged authorities at central and state levels to undertake mock drills once every three months. "Let us undertake mock drills once every three months at both Central and State levels and share best practices," Mandaviya said.

States and union territories (UTs) have been directed to monitor the emerging evidences of coronavirus cases, symptoms and case severity in order to plan appropriate public response. The Centre has also advised states to send all COVID-19 positive samples to INSACOG labs to facilitate the tracking of new variants besides ensuring that people get factually correct information about the new variants.

Moreover, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has classified JN.1 as a separate "variant of interest", while adding it poses a "low" global public health risk.

Also Read: Centre calls for mock drills as COVID cases at 7-month high in India

Also Watch: Covid scare, profit booking, and more: 5 reasons why Sensex plunged 931 points today

Also Read: Covid-19 update: 21 cases of Omicron sub-variant JN.1 found in THESE 3 states