The Union government has directed the states to report cases of influenza-like illness as the number of COVID-19 cases are reported to be on the rise. According to the Health Ministry, there are 1,828 active cases in India, and the situation is largely under control.

“Considering the upcoming festive season, there is a need to put in requisite public health measures and other arrangements to minimise the risk in transmission of the disease by adherence to maintenance of respiratory hygiene,” the advisory stated.

The spotlight is on a new variant of SARS-CoV-2 referred to as JN.1 and it was first reported from Kerala.

The JN.1 variant is supposed to have mutated from an Omicron sub-variant BA.2.86 commonly known as ‘Pirola’. It was first detected in the United States in September 2023 and, more recently, China detected seven infections of the particular sub-variant on December 15.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that all approved Covid-19 vaccines will continue to provide protection against JN.1.

The symptoms of JN.1 sub-variant include mild fever, cough, discomfort in the nasal passage, sore throat, runny nose, pain or pressure within the face, headache and gastrointestinal issues.

So far, there is no evidence to suggest that JN.1 can cause worse symptoms or that it spreads faster than the variants already in circulation.