The daily count of Covid-19 in Delhi reached 1,934 on Thursday after 928 cases were reported on Wednesday, which is the highest number in almost four and a half months.

Data provided by the state health department revealed 23,870 tests were performed in the previous 24 hours as opposed to 13,099 the day before. Gurgaon, meanwhile, recorded 497 new Covid cases on Thursday, an increase of 78% from the previous day′s 278 cases.

Although hospitalizations remain low, there is a steady rise in India′s positive rate, which was 8.1 % on Thursday compared to 7.08 % on Wednesday. According to renowned immunologist Dr. NK Mehra the advent of new sub-variants of the Omicron variant, which caused the third and last great wave, may be contributing to the increase in cases. Currently, along with BA.1 and BA.2 sub-variants BA.4 and BA.5 are also being detected among the infected people.

As per the findings from new research, US experts stated that the Omicron sub-variants BA.2.12.1, BA.4, and BA.5 were able to bypass the protection provided by both spontaneous infection and vaccination, leading to an outbreak and widespread infection. (ETHealthworld, June 24, 2022)