Omicron in India — Maharashtra and Rajasthan have recorded 19 positive cases so far

Two more new cases were confirmed on Monday, December 6, taking the tally to 10 cases so far. According to BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the two new cases reported, both were fully vaccinated. The 37 and 36-year-old individuals arrived from South Africa and the United States on the same day.

According to a release by the BMC, more than 4,000 passengers from ‘at risk- countries' have arrived in Mumbai till December 5 and 16 of them have been tested positive for COVID-19.

Around 6 people, including three Nigerian nationals, were tested positive for the new Omicron variant in Pimpri Chinchwad of Pune district.

Rajasthan’s capital city, Jaipur, recorded 9 Omicron positive cases on Sunday. A family of four arrived from South Africa, who had earlier tested negative when they reached Mumbai via Dubai, tested positive for the new variant.

They also met relatives in Jaipur and attended a wedding ceremony on November 28, after which 5 of their acquaintances also tested positive for the new variant.

Rajasthan health secretary Vaibhav Galriya said in a statement that samples of 34 people were then collected who came in contact with the family and out of which 9 were found positive for Omicron.

The first two cases of Omicron variant, in the country, were detected in Karnataka. After the detection, 57 international passengers who arrived from South African countries remained untraceable after arriving at Bengaluru airport, according to the Bengaluru municipal corporation.

“Priority has been given to trace those 57 passengers from Africa. Our police demonstrate their efficiency and will track them all. But I urge the passengers to act responsibly and with social concern,” health minister Dr. K Sudhakar had said in a statement.

A 72-year-old man, who had returned from Zimbabwe on November 28 tested positive for the new Omicron variant in Surat. However, his family of nine people were tested negative, but his 45-year-old wife was found to be positive for COVID-19.

Another 48-year old, who returned from South Africa, also tested positive for COVID-19 and his samples have been sent to National Institute for Virology for genome sequencing test. He has been treated as a suspect for now.

On December 5, the national capital of India recorded its first positive case for Omicron variant, as announced by Health Minister Satyendra Jain.

The patient who tested positive had returned from Tanzania and had sore throat, body ache and weakness.