Odisha reports 23 new cases of Omicron variant; India's tally mounts to 1,525

Odisha witnessed a sudden spike in the number of Omicron cases after the state reported 23 cases on Sunday, taking the total tally of the Omicron variant in the state to 37.

The samples of all the patients have been sent to the Institute of Life Sciences (ILS), Bhubaneswar for genome sequencing to ascertain the variant of the virus.

Genome sequencing conducted at the ILS confirmed the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

Reportedly, out of 23 new cases, 11 are said to be foreign returnees from Finland, Oman, Sudi Arabia, Dubai, and Syria, while the other 10 are the local cases that were found and two were the contacts of the persons carrying the variant.

On December 21, Odisha had first reported two cases of Omicron.

Odisha also registered 424 positive cases of Covid -19.

Meanwhile, India's tally of Omicron variant stood at 1,525, the Health Ministry said. Maharashtra and Delhi continue to be the worst-hit states. So far, 560 people have recovered from the new strain.

The country also reported a 21 per cent jump in new Covid cases as it reported 27,553 Covid positive cases in the last 24 hours. About 284 people died due to the virus during the period, according to the health ministry data.