Omicron driving Covid cases, third wave in India: Experts

New Delhi, Jan 3 The sudden spike in the number of Covid cases in India is driven by an increased spread of Omicron variant in the country, which may have already started the third wave, experts said on Monday.

Most states and large cities in India have observed a sharp increase in Covid cases, which was not noticed even during festival seasons.

On December 31, India recorded 16,764 new Covid cases, up 27 per cent from the previous day. The average number of cases increased in the last week of December after dropping steadily since mid-May.

On December 29, 13,187 cases were reported, representing a 76.6 per cent rise over the previous week's infections.

"As per the emerging scientific evidence, experts believe that the Omicron variant, first detected in Botswana, is the main reason for the recent rise in infections in India," Dr Dipu T.S., Associate Professor, Division of Infectious Diseases, Amrita Hospital, Kochi, told .

"According to statistics from Global Initiative on sharing all Influenza Data

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