A health staff of Urban Health Centre taking swab samples of a person for COVID-19 test at MVP colony in Visakhapatnam on December 26, 2023. Image for representational purpose only.
| Photo Credit: Deepak K.R.
Telangana recorded 27 cases of COVID-19 caused by the JN.1 variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus as of January 28, according to information disclosed during the Question Hour in the Lok Sabha by Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare S.P. Singh Baghel.
The JN.1 variant was identified in India in November 2023. Since then, there has been a gradual increase in COVID-19 cases attributed to this variant, according to the Minister.
Responding to a query by Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu, the Minister presented data for 17 states that reported JN.1 variant cases. Maharashtra recorded the highest number with 451 cases, followed by Karnataka (399), Andhra Pradesh (207), Kerala (155), Tamil Nadu (92), West Bengal (92), Goa (91), Gujarat (80), Delhi (59), Rajasthan (30), Telangana (27) and Chhattisgarh (25).
Others reported cases in single digits, including seven in Uttar Pradesh, five in Haryana, three in Odisha and one each in Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
“The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare remains vigilant in monitoring the trajectory of COVID-19 nationally and globally. Overall, the country experienced a slight surge in COVID-19 cases in late November 2023, peaking in late December 2023, and currently showing a decline.
“As of January 29, states and union territories have reported a total of 1,460 active COVID-19 cases in the country, with nearly 85% [of them] classified as mild…,” added the Minister.
He also highlighted that financial support has been extended to states and union territories through the National Health Mission (NHM) to strengthen healthcare systems and address challenges arising from public health emergencies, such as pandemics.
