Two deaths have been reported from Karnataka in a span of 24 hours, according to the ministry's data updated at 8 am. 

The number of daily cases had dropped to double-digits till December 5, but cases began to increase after emergence of a new variant and cold weather conditions. 

After December 5, a maximum of a single-day rise of 841 new cases were reported on December 31, 2023 which is 0.2 per cent of the peak cases reported in May 2021, official sources said. 

Of the total active cases, a large majority of these (around 92 per cent) are recovering under home isolation. 

"The currently available data suggests that the JN.1 variant is neither leading to an exponential rise in the new cases nor a surge in the hospitalisation and mortality," the official source stated. 

India has witnessed three waves of COVID-19 in the past with the peak incidence of daily new cases and deaths being reported during the delta wave during April-June 2021. 

At its peak, 414,188 new cases and 3,915 deaths were reported on May 7, 2021. -- PTI