Mumbai: 15 new cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 detected

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As many as 15 new cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 have been detected in Mumbai this week so far, city civic officials said on Wednesday, reported news agency PTI.

Daksha Shah, executive health officer, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), said 19 swab samples tested positive for the JN.1 sub-variant during whole genome sequencing (WGS) and four of them were out of the metropolis, reported PTI.

According to a BMC release, 15 new cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 have been detected. The 15 patients in Mumbai detected with the sub-variant had mild symptoms and four of them suffered from comorbidities (other health conditions) and were admitted to hospitals, reported PTI.

All these patients, nine men and 6 women, have recovered, said the release, reported PTI.

The World Health Organization has classified JN.1 as a separate 'variant of interest' (VoI) given its rapidly-increasing spread, but said it poses a 'low' global public health risk, reported PTI.

According to the BMC, of the 11,966 swab samples tested between December 1, 2023, and January 15, 2024, 537 came out positive for COVID-19, reported PTI.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra on Wednesday registered 81 fresh COVID-19 cases and one fatality, while the tally of patients infected with the JN.1 sub-variant has risen to 451 so far, the state health department said, reported PTI.

The sole fatality was reported from Pune city. The COVID-19 fatality rate in Maharashtra currently stands at 1.81 per cent, it said.

Mumbai registered 26 fresh cases.

At 189, Pune leads the tally of patients found to be infected by the JN.1 sub-variant of Omicron in the state, reported PTI.

Pune is followed by Thane (89 cases of JN.1 sub-variant), Mumbai (37), Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (31), Nagpur (30), Raigad (13), Solapur and Amravati (9), Sangli and Kolhapur (7), Ratnagiri (5), Jalgaon and Hingoli (4), Ahmadnagar and Beed (3), Nanded, Nashik and Dharashiv (2), and one each in Akola, Satara, Sindhudurg Yavatmal and Nandurbar, as per the health department.

A total of 97 people were discharged in Maharashtra on Wednesday at a recovery rate of 98.18 per cent.

A total of 12,269 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours of which 1,783 were RT-PCR and 10,486 were Rapid Antigen Tests. The current positivity rate stands at 0.66 per cent, the department said.

(With inputs from PTI)