Bihar records first confirmed Omicron case, 26-year-old man tests positive in Patna

Representational Image (Credits: PTI)

New Delhi: Amid an ongoing surge in COVID-19 infections in the country, Bihar’s capital city, Patna recorded its first case of the new Omicron variant on Friday (December 31, 2021).

"The first Omicron case has been reported in the State. People have to remain alert and vigilant. We will hold a meeting today evening on the rising number of Covid19 cases," said Bihar CM Nitish Kumar. 

The first Omicron case has been reported in the State. People have to remain alert and vigilant. We will hold a meeting today evening on the rising number of Covid19 cases: Bihar CM Nitish Kumar pic.twitter.com/mfWjDCxZ3D — ANI (@ANI) December 31, 2021

"The 26-year-old person went to Delhi to know his health status on December 21. When he returned to Patna, he underwent RT-PCR test where he also tested Covid positive. The health department had taken his sample for genome sequencing and sent it to the LCDC lab in Delhi. His report came positive on Thursday evening," the official said.

"The patient is under home isolation. We have initiated contact tracing to find out others who may have come in contact with him."

Meanwhile, India logged 309 fresh Omicron infections, taking the total tally of such cases in the country to 1,270, according to the Union Health Ministry data. At least 374 have recovered, the Health Ministry said. 

Maharashtra has recorded the highest number of Omicron cases at 450, followed by Delhi at 320, Kerala at 109, Gujarat at 97, Rajasthan at 69, Telangana at 62. A total of 23 states and Union territories have reported cases of the new variant, namely Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Chandigarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Manipur and Punjab.