Mumbai: 19 test positive for JN.1 sub-variant of COVID-19

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Nineteen persons have tested positive for JN.1 sub-variant of COVID-19 in Mumbai, an official from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said on Tuesday, reported news agency PTI.

Out of 22 samples found positive for JN.1 sub-variant of COVID-19 in Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) analysis, 19 were from Mumbai, Daksha Shah, executive health officer of the BMC told PTI.

Two samples belonged to patients from outside the city, and one was a duplicate, she said, reported PTI.

According to a release issued by the civic body, these samples were sent for testing last month, and the reports arrived on Monday.

All 19 patients who tested positive for JN.1 in the city suffered mild symptoms, and two of them had comorbidities. The patients have recovered from the infection, it stated, reported PTI.

Most of the samples were tested at private laboratories, the release said, reported PTI.

Of the 8,262 samples tested between December 1, 2023 and January 8, 2024, only 394 tested positive for coronavirus, it stated, reported PTI.

Meanwhile, Sixty-one new cases were recorded in the state on Monday, as per an official update on COVID-19 from the Public Health Department of Maharashtra.

The department also reported that 70 patients were discharged on the same day. The recovery rate in the state was recorded at 98.17 per cent while the case fatality rate stood at 1.81 per cent.

A total of 2728 COVID tests were conducted in the state on Monday, which included 1439 first RT-PCR tests and 1305 RAT tests. The positivity rate for the day was 2.23 per cent. As of today, 250 patients have been infected with the JN.1 variant in the state.

There were a total of 682 cases of JN. 1 sub-variant of COVID-19 has been reported from 12 states across the country as of January 6, reported ANI.

199 cases were reported in Karnataka, 148 in Kerala, 139 in Maharashtra, 47 in Goa, 36 from Gujarat, 30 each from Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan, 26 in Tamil Nadu, 21 in New Delhi, 3 in Odisha, 2 in Telangana and one in Haryana.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently classified JN.1 as a variant of interest, distinct from its parent lineage, BA.2.86. However, the global health body emphasised that the overall risk posed by JN.1 remains low based on current evidence.

(With inputs from PTI and ANI)