India's Active COVID Cases Slip Below 3,000 Amid Variant Emergence

India recorded 272 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, bringing the active caseload down to 2,990, the lowest since December 5, 2023. The health ministry data, updated at 8 am, also reported no deaths for the second consecutive day.

While daily cases had dipped to double digits by December 5, a new variant and colder weather triggered a slight uptick, with 841 cases reported on December 31. This remains significantly lower than the peak of 4,14,188 cases seen in May 2021, representing just 0.2% of that figure, according to official sources.

Currently available data suggests the JN.1 variant isn't causing exponential case growth or significant hospitalizations or deaths, the sources said.

India has grappled with three COVID-19 waves, the deadliest being the Delta variant surge of April-June 2021, which peaked with 4,14,188 cases and 3,915 deaths on May 7. Since the pandemic began, over 4.5 crore infections and 5.3 lakh deaths have been reported across the country.

However, the recovery rate currently stands at a healthy 98.81%, with over 4.4 crore people having recovered from the disease, as per the health ministry website.