As a result of a returnee from Spain testing positive for Omicron, Punjab has reported the first instance of the omnicron virus.

Omicron threat: Punjab has reported its first instance of the Omicron variety, which is causing a worldwide outbreak of Covid infections. In India, almost 800 cases have been documented across 21 states and union territories.

A 36-year-old man from Spain arrived in Punjab earlier this month and tested positive for the new type, making him the first case in the province. 

A health official told PTI that the man, who arrived in India from Spain on December 4, paid a visit to his relatives in Nawanshahr, Punjab. Upon his arrival, the individual tested negative for the virus. On December 12, however, he tested positive. 

The subject was then hospitalised to a hospital, and his samples were forwarded to a facility established up at the Government Medical College in Patiala for genome sequencing.

Dr Rajiv Bhaskar, state nodal officer for Covid, said the genome sequencing data identifying him positive for the Omicron variation arrived on December 28. 

The individual was tested again on December 25 and his results were negative, so he was released from the hospital, according to the officer.