The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare told the Parliament on Tuesday that the recent Covid-19 rise in India would peak around June 13 this year, and cases have increased since the end of May. This surge was mostly catalyzed by the Omicron sub-variants, namely NB.1.8.1 (otherwise known as Nimbus), and XFG.
At the end of May 2025, the case of Covid-19 was increasing in the country, and the cases reached the peak on the 13th of June. The cases have reduced considerably since then. In response, Prataprao Jadhav, the Minister of State of Health made a written reply to the Rajya Sabha in the context of the current Monsoon Session and made informed the fact that, as reported by States and UTs, most cases were of mild nature and were self-limiting, the Minister informed.
Jadhav also cited a World Health Organization (WHO) Disease Outbreak News (DON), released on May 28 (link below), that noted global SARS-CoV-2 had been on the rise since mid-February, especially in the Eastern Mediterranean, South-East Asia, and Western Pacific regions, including India. The report reflected that, although there have been slight changes in the characteristics of the variants making reports of NB.1.8.1 more common all over the world, the trend in the number of cases had been quite parallel to that of the previous year.
The risk analysis conducted by WHO showed that NB.1.8.1 and XFG do not provide any added risks to public health in addition to the rest of the circulating Omicron descendants.
On May 29, the health ministry had issued an advisory asking all states and UTs to reexamine the preparedness of the hospitals, giving emphasis to diagnostics facilities as well as the PPE kits, isolating beds, availability of oxygen, ICU, and ventilator beds. States were also to report the trend of influenza-like illness and severe acute respiratory illness, ensure proper tests were done, and refer the samples to acquire full genome sequencing.
Further, states were called upon to carry out mock drills in order to evaluate preparedness and utilisation readiness of health facilities, infrastructures, logistics, and personnel.
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