Karnataka has reported the highest number of JN.1 cases at 215, followed by Andhra Pradesh (189), Maharashtra (170), Kerala (154), West Bengal (96), Goa (90), Tamil Nadu (88) and Gujarat (76), news agency PTI said while quoting the data compiled by INSACOG.

Telangana and Rajasthan reported 32 JN.1 cases each, Chhattisgarh recorded 25, Delhi (16), Uttar Pradesh (7), Haryana (5), Odisha (3), and Uttarakhand and Nagaland 1 each, the PTI report further added.

Union Health Ministry has asked the States and Union Territories to maintain a close vigil against the virus and take appropriate measures to check the spread of Covid-19. The Centre has instructed the states to consistently oversee and document instances of influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) on a district level across all healthcare facilities. This is aimed at promptly identifying an upward trajectory in Covid cases.

Spreads rapidly but low in severity

Apart from India, several nations reported a sudden uptick in the cases of the Covid-19 virus as the new JN.1 sub-variant spreads faster, but the health authorities have assured the people to not panic as the sub-variant is low in severity. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has labeled the JN.1 sub-variant as a “variant of concern” but cleared that it poses “low” risk to the public health.

The health experts have pointed out that there is no need to be “unnecessarily alarmed” about the sub-variants of the Covid-19 variants as the virus is going to stay among humans in some form or other. INSACOG also said that they discovered more than 400 sub-variants of the Omicron variant of Covid-19.

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Published: 13 Jan 2024, 06:59 PM IST