Amid a gradual increase in Covid-19 cases in Delhi in recent days, some medical experts say the new XBB.1.16 variant could be driving the rise in cases but add there's no need to panic and people should follow Covid-appropriate behaviour and get booster shots if they have not already.
They also say this rise could be a result of more people getting themselves tested for Covid as a precaution when they actually get infected with the influenza virus and develop fever and related ailments.
Over the past week, Delhi has seen a rise in daily Covid cases amid a sharp increase in H3N2 influenza cases in parts of the country, including the national capital.
On Friday, Delhi recorded over 150 fresh Covid cases with a positivity rate of 6.66 per cent. A day before that, it logged 117 cases with a positivity rate of 4.95 per cent. The number of daily Covid cases has nearly doubled since Tuesday when 83 fresh Covid cases were reported with a positivity rate of 5.83 per cent and one fatality.
The number of fresh Covid cases had dropped to zero on January 16, the first time since the pandemic began. This is the first time since October last year that Delhi recorded daily Covid-19 cases in three digits.
The Delhi health department data showed that 1,653 tests were conducted on Tuesday and 2,282 tests were done on Thursday. Only 27 of the 7,984 beds are occupied in dedicated Covid-19 hospitals, while 250 patients are in home isolation, the department said in a bulletin .