India reports first omicron death

Prothom Alo English Desk

India Wednesday reported its first omicron death in the northwestern city of Udaipur, as the country recorded a whopping 58,097 fresh Covid cases and 534 fatalities in 24 hours, reports UNB.

The Omicron victim -- identified as 73-year-old Laxminarayan Nagar -- tested positive for Covid on 15 December. A subsequent genome sequencing of his blood samples confirmed that the man had contracted the omicron strain, health officials said.

The man, who had comorbidities but was doubly vaccinated, succumbed to the omicron strain of the coronavirus in the early hours of 31 December, according to the officials.

Meanwhile, India logged 58,097 new Covid cases in 24 hours, taking the total caseload to 35,018,358, as per the latest health ministry data.

Of the total Covid cases logged in 24 hours, officials said that 2,135 were of the omicron variant with Maharashtra in western India and the national capital recording 653 and 464 cases of the variant, respectively.