In biggest spike in 7 months, Punjab sees 1,871 new Covid cases; 7 of Omicron
The Omicron cases are worrying, as this strain on the virus is far more infectious than the previous version; Ludhiana also saw biggest single-day increase in cases since June
Chandigarh In a major Covid spike in Punjab, 1,871 cases were reported on Wednesday, the biggest single-day spike over the past seven months. Of these patients, at least seven were found to be infected with Omicron, the virus variant that spreads far more rapidly than the previous strain. The active cases of the infection in the state is now at 4,434. There were four deaths on Wednesday.
The state’s positivity rate has also registered a high at 7.95%, with Patiala district registering 598 fresh cases with 20.565% positivity rate. SAS Nagar registered 300 cases followed by 203 in Ludhiana.
LUDHIANA REPORTS THREE OMICRON CASES
The industrial district of Ludhiana saw three Omicron cases, with overall Covid cases increasing 100% to 203; such a large number of cases was last reported on June 6, 2021. Of the three Omicron cases, the first is a 17-year-old resident of Aggar Nagar who had returned from France; the other two, who had returned from the United Kingdom (UK), are from Raikot.
PATIALA DC, MAYOR TEST POSITIVE;
TWO OMICRON CASES DETECTED
A Patiala couple, who returned from the UK last week, tested positive for Omicron on Wednesday, as the district reported 598 fresh Covid cases. Deputy commissioner Sandeep Hans and mayor Sanjeev Sharma are among those who have been infected. District epidemiologist Dr Sumeet Singh said, “The couple were found positive for Omicron, which is highly infectious, after genome sequence testing. The couple, in their 40s, have been shifted to the isolation centre at Government Rajindra Hospital,” he said.
Hoshiarpur also reported its first Omicron case with a 42-year-old woman, who had recently returned from Portugal, testing positive for the Covid-19 variant. The woman belongs to a village in Tanda. District epidemiologist DP Singh said the woman had travelled back on December 28 and was tested for Covid-19 at the Delhi airport.
Jalandhar reported 179 positive cases, with a US-returned 30-year-old man testing positive for Omicron. Initially he had tested positive on December 22 and had been discharged from hospital, after testing negative.
Overall, 1,69,05,814 samples have been collected for testing in Punjab, of which 22,794 were tested on Wednesday. The number of doses of vaccine administered on Wednesday was over 1.26 lakh.
