COVID-19: 3 deaths in Kerala, 1 in Karnataka as India logs 614 new cases so far

Three persons died in Kerala and 1 in Karnataka died due to COVID-19 infection as the country reported 614 new cases of COVID-19  in the last 24 hours, the highest since 21 May. Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said on Wednesday that a 64-year-old man succumbed to a COVID-19 infection in the city five days ago. Also, Kerala has reported 292 fresh COVID-19 infections and three deaths in 24 hours, data on the Union Health Ministry website said. When asked about whether the cause of death was linked to the new subvariant JN.1 of the SARS CoV-2 virus, Rao said that it remains unknown at this time. The deceased, who had pre-existing health conditions, was a resident of Chamarajpet and passed away on December 15, as reported by the Minister during a press conference. Rao also said, “It is still not known whether the patient had JN.1 subvariant infection. He had heart failure, and also TB infection. He also had hypertension, lung disease, bronchial asthma, along with COVID-19 and pneumonia.” Commissioner of Health and Family Welfare Services, Randeep D, told PTI: “It’s the first (COVID death) after a recent surge in cases”.Rao, meanwhile, said the state government would increase testing to gauge the rate of COVID-19 infections. Cases of JN.1 designated as a “variant of interest” by the World Health Organization (WHO) have been reported in three states – Goa, Kerala, and Maharashtra. A report by PTI quoted official sources saying 19 cases of JN.1 COVID-19 sub-variant have been traced in Goa and one each in Kerala and Maharashtra. With the three deaths reported in the state, the total number of people who died due to COVID-19 in Kerala since its outbreak three years ago reached 72,056. With agencies’ inputs.