India recorded a single-day increase of 1,59,632 new coronavirus cases over the last 24 hours with the daily positivity rate shooting up to 10.21 per cent, according to Health Ministry data compiled on Sunday morning.

The country's R naught value that indicates the spread of the infection is 2.69, surpassing the 1.69 recorded during the peak of the second wave of the pandemic.

Delhi reported 20,181 fresh Covid cases, the highest single-day rise since May last year. The national capital also reported 7 deaths over the last 24 hours. The positivity rate has climbed to 19.60 per cent.

Mumbai, the country's financial capital reported 20,318 cases in the last 24 hours. Maharashtra announced a series of fresh restrictions as it logged 41,434 new Covid cases on Saturday as the highly infectious Omicron variant continued its rampage through the country. Thirteen people died in the last 24 hours in the state, five of them in Mumbai.

With a single-day jump of 616 Omicron cases, India now has 3,623 cases of the new variant of coronavirus. Omicron has been reported in 27 states, with the most cases in Maharashtra with 1,009 cases, followed by Delhi with 513 infections. Out of the total Omicron cases reported so far, 1,409 people have recovered or migrated.

Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has said that the Omicron variant is now the predominant circulating strain.

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