Karnataka records 265 fresh COVID cases; active tally rise above 550

Karnataka recorded 265 new Covid-19 cases on Monday, pushing the state’s positivity rate to 40.7%, according to the health department. With this, the total number of cases reported in the state this year has reached 1,220.

In the last 24 hours, 650 tests were conducted—596 RT-PCR and 54 rapid antigen tests. The number of active cases in the state has risen to 559, with only two patients currently in intensive care.

Meanwhile, a new Covid-19 variant, XFG, has been detected in India, based on data from INSACOG. So far, 163 cases of this variant have been identified across the country out of around 6,000 samples tested.


The XFG variant, which contains four significant spike protein mutations, has seen rapid global transmission since it was first reported in Canada, according to a report in The Lancet.

As of now, no XFG cases have been detected in Karnataka.

As of the latest update, India currently has around 6,133 active COVID-19 cases, with six new deaths reported in the past 24 hours. This marks a resurgence following a previous decline in active cases. The states leading this wave include Kerala (approximately 1,950 active cases), Gujarat (822), West Bengal (693), Delhi (686), and Maharashtra (595). Most cases are mild and are being managed at home, although hospital preparedness remains high as health authorities continue to monitor the situation closely

[With PTI inputs]