8 flyers test negative for Omicron in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 7: Eight out of the 10 samples of COVID-19 positive persons who arrived in Kerala from 'high risk' countries have tested negative for the Omicron variant of the virus, state Health Minister Veena George said on Tuesday.

Results of two samples are awaited, she said in a release. Besides that, another sample of a person, who arrived at Kozhikode from a high-risk country and tested positive for COVID-19, has been sent for testing. The samples are being tested for Omicron at the Rajiv Gandhi Center for Biotechnology.

The minister, in the release, said that Omicron genetic tests were being carried out on samples of passengers from high-risk countries who tested positive for COVID-19 in RT-PCR tests.

The samples which tested negative were of persons from Kozhikode (2), Malappuram (2), Ernakulam (2), Thiruvananthapuram (1) and Pathanamthitta (1) , the release said. Even though initial results have been negative, there should be no lack of vigilance, the minister said.