ISLAMABAD: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) on Tuesday confirmed 75 cases of Omicron variant of coronavirus in Pakistan.

According to the National Institutes of Health, 17 cases were reported in Islamabad, 33 in Karachi and 13 in Lahore and 12 in people coming from abroad. Authorities are conducting contact tracing to prevent the spread of omicron. On Monday, sources privy to the Punjab health department said that as many as 12 cases of Omicron variant of coronavirus had been detected in Lahore.

The sources further said that seven patients belonged to Johar Town while five others were residents of Defense area. The samples of patients were taken on December 23. On December 13, first omicron case was reported in Karachi. The cases of Omicron variant, which is highly infectious, have been rising in the country and so far all four provinces have reported cases of this new strain.