As the Omicron variant of the Covid-19 continues to fuel a surge in the infection count across the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday chaired a review meeting where he stressed upon the need to continue intensive containment and active surveillance in clusters reporting higher number of cases, and providing required technical assistance to states where the infection is surging rapidly, Trend reports citing The Indian Express.
He also underlined the necessity of using masks and boosting health infrastructure, and said there is a need for continuous research in testing, vaccines, pharmacological interventions, including genome sequencing as the coronavirus is evolving.
Just ahead of the Budget session of Parliament, which usually begins in the end of January, nearly 400 staffers working with Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha secretariats and allied services have tested positive for Covid-19 in the last few days, triggering a move to impose curbs on employees’ attendance.
India reported over 1.5 lakh daily infections for the second consecutive day, taking the active caseload to 5,90,611. According to the Union Ministry of Health, the country recorded 1,59,632 fresh Covid-19 cases and 327 deaths in the last 24 hours ending Sunday, 9 am. The daily positivity rate stood at 10.21 per cent.
Meanwhile, the Omicron tally in India has reached 3,623, with Maharashtra (1,009) continuing to top the count.