Following the Union Health Ministry route that States be alert and ready for any doable surge in COVID-19 cases following the emergence of the new variant JN.1, senior well being officers stated that there isn’t a transfer to advocate administration of vaccine booster dose for India.

India SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) chief N.Ok. Arora talking to The Hindu on December 24 defined that there was no want for an extra fourth booster dose of vaccine towards COVID-19 amid the surge in instances and the detection of the JN.1 sub-variant. 

“Only those over 60 years of age who have comorbidities and high risk patients in this age group can take a precautionary third dose if they have not taken one till now. As of now there is no need for a fourth dose in the general public. We would advise precaution and not panic,” stated Dr. Arora.

He added that new variants, sub variants and mutations have been being reported from all over the world.

“Fortunately, none of these Omicron variants have really been associated with more severe disease or hospitalisation. Symptoms of the JN.1 subvariant include fever, nasal discharge, cough, occasional diarrhea, and severe body aches, with recovery typically within a week. The Union Health Ministry has already directed States to increase testing and also submitted positive samples for further probe,” he stated.

India noticed a single-day rise of 656 COVID-1 infections whereas the energetic instances have elevated to three,742, in response to Union Health Ministry knowledge up to date on Sunday. The loss of life toll was recorded at 5,33,333 with one new loss of life reported from Kerala in a span of 24 hours, the information up to date at 8 a.m. confirmed.

Also learn: All advised to wear masks in crowded public spaces that are poorly ventilated 

Meanwhile, Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII), has confirmed that it will likely be “aiming to obtain licensure for XBB1 COVID variant vaccine which is very similar to the JN.1 variant for use in India.”

In a written assertion shared with The Hindu, the corporate stated: “As winter approaches, we anticipate a slight increase in JN.1 COVID cases. It’s essential not to panic; instead, we recommend that the elderly take precautions, including wearing masks.”

“Regarding our vaccine efforts, we are currently offering a XBB1 variant vaccine which is very similar to the JN.1 variant in the U.S. and Europe. In the coming months, we are aiming to obtain licensure of this vaccine for India. We plan to submit the necessary documentation to the regulators, with the goal of making it available to the public.”

At current the checklist of authorised and accessible vaccine in India embrace Covaxin, Covishield, and Sputnik-V. While Covaxin is India’s indigenous COVID-19 vaccine by Bharat Biotech developed in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Virology, Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd. manufactures Covishield, and Sputnik-V vaccine has been developed by Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Moscow, Russia.

The announcement by SII comes at a time when as per the newest COVID-19 epidemiological replace by the World Health Organisation (WHO), globally, the variety of new instances elevated by 52% throughout the 28-day interval of 20 November to 17 December 2023 as in comparison with the earlier 28-day interval, with over 850 000 new instances reported.

It added that the variety of new deaths decreased by 8% as in comparison with the earlier 28-day interval, with over 3,000 new fatalities reported.

As of 17 December 2023, over 772 million confirmed instances and almost seven million deaths have been reported globally.

Additionally as of 18 December, JN.1, a sub-lineage of BA.2.86 Omicron variant has been designated a separate variant of curiosity (VOI) aside from its father or mother lineage BA.2.86 on account of its speedy enhance in prevalence in latest weeks. Globally, EG.5 stays to be essentially the most reported VOI, WHO stated.