INDIAN health minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday (30) told the parliament that Omicron, the new Covid-19 variant of concern, has not been reported in India yet.
Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the parliament of which he is a member, Mandaviya said, “The Omicron variant has been detected in 14 countries so far. There is no case of Omicron in India yet. We are immediately checking suspicious cases and conducting genome sequencing. We are also taking all possible precautions.”
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The winter session of the parliament kicked off on Monday (29).
He also said that the government has issued an advisory based on global developments related to the new variant and is keeping a close watch on the country’s ports. He also told the house that studies are being undertaken on the Omicron strain.
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The minister, who took over from Dr Harsh Vardhan in July, stressed on the need to take precautions.
“We have learnt a lot during the pandemic. We have resources and labs to check. All measures have been taken to ensure this variant does not reach the country,” he said.
Earlier in the day, Indian health secretary Rajesh Bhushan held a review meeting with states and union territories and advised them to ramp up testing for early identification and management of the coronavirus cases, The Indian Express reported.
He underlined that the new variant doesn’t escape RT-PCR and RAT tests and asked the states and union territories to ensure adequate infrastructure and home isolation under supervision.
This photograph taken on April 28, 2026 shows a boy getting "thali", a sacred thread tied to his neck symbolising marriage to Hindu warrior god Aravan during the annual Koovagam transgender festival at the Koothandavar temple in Tamil Nadu's Kallakurichi district. For a few fleeting days each year, at the heart of the Koothandavar Temple where ostracised transgender community members from across India come to honour the Hindu deity Aravan, a tradition rooted in millennia-old Hindu texts -- and to enjoy a brief oasis of freedom.Getty Images
This photograph taken on April 29, 2026 shows a member of the transgender community mourning as a priest cuts the "thali", a sacred thread symbolising end of her marriage to Hindu warrior god Aravan during the annual Koovagam transgender festival at the Koothandavar temple in Tamil Nadu's Kallakurichi district. For a few fleeting days each year, at the heart of the Koothandavar Temple where ostracised transgender community members from across India come to honour the Hindu deity Aravan, a tradition rooted in millennia-old Hindu texts -- and to enjoy a brief oasis of freedom. Getty Images
