India Reports 656 New COVID 19 Cases, Active Tally at 3,742

Hiren Chokshi December 24, 2023

2 minutes read

Latest Covid-19 updates in India. With 656 new cases, the active tally stands at 3,742. The death toll reaches 5,33,333, including one new death in Kerala within 24 hours.

On Sunday, India reported 656 new Covid 19 cases, leading to a rise in the active case tally to 3,742, according to the latest data from the Union health ministry at 8 am. The recorded death toll has now reached 5,33,333, with a new fatality reported in Kerala within a 24-hour span. The overall Covid 19 case count for the country stands at 4.50 crore (4,50,08,620).

The health ministry’s website indicates a noteworthy increase in the number of individuals recovering from the disease, now totaling 4,44,71,545, resulting in a national recovery rate of 98.81%.

Additionally, the case fatality rate stands at 1.19%. According to the ministry’s website, an impressive 220.67 crore doses of Covid 19 vaccines have been administered throughout the country. Notably, on the preceding Saturday, India experienced its most significant single-day spike since May 21, 2023, with 752 new Covid 19 cases, elevating the count of active infections in the country to 3,420.

As per information provided by the Union Health Ministry, there have been four reported deaths within the last 24 hours, contributing to a total death toll of 5,33,332. Among these fatalities, two occurred in Kerala, with one each in Rajasthan and Karnataka.

Also read ➡️ India On High Alert As Fresh JN.1 Sub-variant Of COVID Cases Surge Sharply

In a recent conversation with a news agency, Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, former Chief Scientist of the World Health Organization (WHO), reassured the public that there is no immediate cause for panic regarding the current situation. She emphasized that the identified variant, JN.1, is categorized as a variant of interest and not a variant of concern. Dr. Swaminathan urged people to exercise caution and adopt proper precautionary measures, stating, “We need to be cautious, but we don’t need to worry because we don’t have any data to suggest that this variant JN.1 is more severe or it’s going to cause more pneumonia, more death,” as reported by ANI.

Recently, the WHO officially designated JN.1 as a variant of interest, distinguishing it from its parent lineage, BA.2.86. Despite this classification, the UN health body emphasized that the overall risk associated with the sub-variant remains low based on current evidence. Additionally, the WHO reported a 52% increase in new COVID cases over the past four weeks.