India reported more than 6x bump in COVID cases in last 8 days: Health Ministry

India has reported more than a 6.3 times increase in cases in the last 8 days, the Health Ministry said in a briefing on Wednesday. The ministry said that a sharp increase has been seen in the case positivity rate, from 0.79% on December 29, 2021, to 5.03% on January 5, 2022.

The Health Ministry flagged Maharashtra, West Bengal, Delhi, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Gujarat as states/union territories of concern. As many as 28 districts in India are reporting more than 10% weekly positivity. The ministry further noted that there is an upsurge in Covid-19 infections in cities and that Omicron is the predominant circulating strain. West Bengal is seen to have the highest positivity rate currently.

The ministry also said that the overall hospitalisation rate is nearly 4% this time around in comparison to the 20% rate seen during the second wave in 2021.

'Molnupiravir has major safety concerns'
The US approved Molnupiravir based on 1433 patients with a 3% reduction in serious-moderate Covid disease, Dr Balram Bhargava, DG-ICMR said. “We have to remember that this drug has major safety concerns. It can cause teratogenicity, mutagenicity and can also cause cartilage damage. It can be damaging to muscles as well,” he added. If a patient consumes Molnupiravir, they will need to use a contraceptive for three months, both male and female as the child born could be affected, he added.

With this, he said that the drug has not been included in the national task force treatment and that the World Health Organisation and the United Kingdom have not included it either.

Dr Bhargava said that “Omicron is the predominant circulating strain in the cities in the country, mass gatherings should be avoided to lower the speed of this spread.

Lav Agarwal, Health Ministry has noted that 25.2 lakh cases were recorded globally on January 4, the highest ever since the onset of the pandemic. Approximately 65% of cases in the week ending January 4 were reported from the USA, UK, France, Italy & Spain.

Agarwal said that relatively less hospitalisation has been observed in countries that are reporting a surge in Omicron cases. Do note, 108 cases of Omicron-related deaths have been reported globally so far.

Talking about booster doses, Dr VK Paul, Member-Health, NITI Aayog said that the precautionary dose of Covid-19 vaccine will be the same vaccine as that given to the person the first time around. “Those who've received Covaxin will receive Covaxin, those who've received primary two doses of Covishield will receive Covishield,” he said.