The 111 fresh cases of Covid-19 in Kerala are out of the 127 reported from across the country, according to the data.
Published Dec 19, 2023 | 12:28 PM ⚊ Updated Dec 19, 2023 | 6:47 PM
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The active Covid-19 cases in Kerala, on Tuesday, 19 December, rose by 115 to 1,749, according to data on the Union Health Ministry’s website.
The 115 fresh cases in Kerala are out of the 142 reported from across the country, according to the data of the last 24 hours by 8 am on Tuesday.
The southern state also reported one death due to Covid-19 during the day, bringing the total number of people who died in the state since the virus outbreak three years ago to 72,053.
The number of people who were treated, discharged, or migrated during the day after being diagnosed with the infection was recorded at 112, bringing the total under this category to 68,36,979 to date, according to the Health Ministry’s website.
On Friday, 15 December, one Abdulla (80) of Palakkandy in the municipality, succumbed to the infection.
This marked the second Covid-19-related death in the northern districts of Kerala within the past 48 hours: KP Kumaran (77) of Vattoli in Kozhikode district also succumbed to the infection on Friday.
In response to Abdulla’s passing, local MLA KP Mohanan organised a meeting with health officers and municipal authority officials to discuss precautionary measures for containing the virus.
The municipality is maintaining heightened vigilance to prevent the spread, implementing decisions from the meeting chaired by the MLA.
Commencing Saturday, mask-wearing was made compulsory and the police have been instructed to discourage unnecessary gatherings.
Health workers have launched a special drive to identify individuals with fever, and those showing Covid symptoms will be placed under observation.
Additionally, efforts are underway to trace individuals in close contact with the deceased, subjecting them to home quarantine.
Meanwhile, on 8 December, Kerala reported a case of the Covid-19 subvariant JN.1.
A 79-year-old woman tested positive in an RT-PCR test conducted on 18 November after displaying mild symptoms of influenza-like illnesses (ILI). She subsequently recovered from Covid-19.
JN.1 evolved from BA2.86, a variant that gained attention globally over the past few months, due to its vast number of mutations. Several instances of BA2.86 were observed worldwide, drawing interest from scientists and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Speaking to South First, physician and Co-Chairman of the National Indian Medical Association Covid Task Force, Dr Rajeev Jayadevan said that the majority of sequences during the last surge in India in April 2023 belonged to the XBB lineage, a recombinant variant of Omicron.
XBB resulted from the genetic material mixing of two distinct Omicron sub-lineages in the same individual within the same cell, likely originating in the East Asian region.
“While BA2.86 appeared in the second half of 2023, it initially showed slow growth. In October, JN.1 emerged as a variant of BA2.86, distinguished by an additional spike mutation, the L455S mutation. This spike mutation is likely crucial, affecting the virus’s ability to evade human immune response and to enter cells, potentially conferring unique properties to JN.1 not present in BA2.86,” Dr Jayadevan said.
JN.1’s rapid global spread, including in India, is likely due to international travel. Asymptomatic carriers, coupled with limited testing, contribute to the virus’s dissemination.
Speaking to South First, Dr Gagandeep Kang said, “Do not worry about the number of infections. You worry when hospitalisations go up, particularly if they are associated with only one type of people. The concern arises when young people start getting hospitalised, not merely when those with comorbidities or the elderly, who are susceptible to all viruses, are affected.”
A Union Health Ministry advisory has asked all states and Union territories to be vigilant against Covid-19, ahead of the Christmas-New Year festival season.
The advisory was issued after the country witnessed five Covid-related deaths — four in Kerala and one in Uttar Pradesh — over the past few weeks. Kerala also detected JN.1, a subvariant of Covid-19.
Union Health Secretary Sudhansh Pant’s advisory emphasised the importance of remaining vigilant in the fight against the pandemic. He acknowledged that the collaborative efforts between the Union and state governments have helped maintain a consistent and sustainable decline in infection rates.
“However, as the Covid-19 virus continues to circulate and its epidemiology behaviour gets settled with Indian weather conditions and circulation of other usual pathogens, it is important to keep the momentum going to effectively deal with the challenges in public health,” the advisory said.
