India witnessed a slight uptick in Covid-19 infections, with the Union health ministry reporting a single-day rise of 157 new cases on Wednesday. The total number of active cases stood at 1,496, according to the latest data released by the ministry at 8 am.
Tragically, two new fatalities were also recorded within a span of 24 hours, with one death reported each from Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh, underscoring the continued threat posed by the virus.
The resurgence in daily cases follows a period of relative decline, with numbers dropping to double digits until December 5. However, a resurgence in cases was observed thereafter, attributed in part to the emergence of a new variant, JN.1, coupled with cold weather conditions.
Despite this increase, official sources maintain that the JN.1 variant has not led to an exponential rise in new cases or a significant surge in hospitalizations and fatalities.
India has faced three waves of Covid-19 in the past, with the Delta wave in April-June 2021 being the most severe. At its peak, the country reported 4,14,188 new cases and 3,915 deaths on May 7, 2021.
Since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020, India has recorded over 4.5 crore infections and more than 5.3 lakh deaths. However, the nation has also witnessed a remarkable recovery rate, with over 4.4 crore individuals successfully recuperating from the disease, translating to a national recovery rate of 98.81 percent.
Efforts to curb the spread of the virus have been bolstered by India’s vaccination campaign, with over 220.67 crore doses of Covid-19 vaccines administered across the country, according to data available on the health ministry website.