India COVID-19 report: Highest single-day tally of 1702 omicron cases recorded

India has added 2,71,202 new coronavirus infections, taking the total tally of the country’s COVID-19 cases to 3,71,22,164, including 7,743 cases of the omicron variant, as per the Union Health Ministry data, updated on Sunday.

The country has witnessed 1,702 new cases of the omicron variant, which happens to be the highest in a single day as yet. There has also been an increase of 28.17% since Saturday.

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While experts have said it is not possible to undertake a genome sequencing process for every sample collected, they are of the opinion that omicron is the driving factor behind the current wave of infections.

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The active cases have increased to 15,50,377, the highest in 225 days, while the death toll has climbed to 4,86,066 with 314 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

Meanwhile, the ministry has noted that the active cases make up 4.18% of the total infections. At the same time, the national COVID-19 recovery rate has decreased to 94.51%. 

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The past 24 hours has marked an increase of 1,32,557 cases, which has been duly recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload.

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India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16. It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19. The country crossed the starkly grim milestone of two crores on May 4 and three crores on June 23.

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Meanwhile, the government has ramped up its vaccination drive with Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging all frontline workers and people above 60 to get their precautionary doses. Following a recent meeting with the chief ministers of various states, Modi said that local containment measures were best suited to curb the spread and suggested following a “pre-emptive, collective, and proactive approach” to tackle this wave of infections. Further, the Prime Minister urged the nation to be prepared for any future variants of the coronavirus. 

[Edited with PTI inputs]