By PTI
MUMBAI: Maharashtra on Saturday reported eight new infections of the Omicron variant of coronavirus which took the total of such cases in the state to 48, the health department said.
But 28 of these patients have already recovered or have been discharged after testing negative for COVID-19 in subsequent tests, it said.
Overall, Maharashtra reported 854 new coronavirus infections including eight Omicron cases during the day.
Of eight new Omicron patients, four were detected following RT-PCR tests at the Mumbai airport.
One of them is from Mumbai itself, another is from Jalgaon in north Maharashtra and other two from Chhattisgarh and Kerala, respectively, officials said.
Two of them had travelled to Africa, one to Tanzania while another had been to the UK.
All four are fully vaccinated and asymptomatic, the health officials said.
Three other new Omicron patients were a couple from Satara in Western Maharashtra and their 13-year-old daughter.
The couple and their two daughters had returned from Uganda recently; the younger daughter who is five years old was diagnosed with COVID-19 but not the Omicron variant, district officials had said earlier in the day.
The health condition of all four from the family was said to be fine.
Another new Omicron patient was a 17-year-old girl from Pune city who had come into close contact with an international traveler, officials said.