The number of cases of Covid-19 sub-variant JN.1 has crossed 1,000 mark with Uttar Pradesh becoming the latest State to join the list of 16 States and UTs which have detected its presence, according to the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG).
In the meantime, India has recorded 609 new cases of Covid, while the number of active cases of the infection has declined to 3,368, the health ministry said on Friday. Three deaths — two in Kerala and one in Karnataka — have been reported in a span of 24 hours, according to the ministry’s data updated at 8 am.
Regarding Covid-JN.1 variant, the INCASOG showed Karnataka has reported the highest number of cases at 214, followed by Maharashtra (170), Kerala (154), Andhra Pradesh (189), Gujarat (76) and Goa (66).
Telangana and Rajasthan have recorded 32 JN.1 cases each, Chhattisgarh has recorded 25, Tamil Nadu 22, Delhi 16, Uttar Pradesh 6, Haryana five, Odisha three, West Bengal two and Uttarakhand one, according to the data.
A total of 1,013 cases of JN.1 have been detected till now across the 16 states and UTs.
The Centre has asked the states and Union territories to maintain a constant vigil amid an uptick in the number of Covid cases and the detection of the JN.1 sub-variant in the country. The States have been urged to ensure effective compliance of the detailed operational guidelines for the revised surveillance strategy for COVID-19 shared with them by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
The states have also been asked to regularly monitor and report district-wise cases of Influenza-like Illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) from all health facilities for an early detection of a rising trend of cases.
The World Health Organization (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.