India recorded a 22% rise in Covid cases this week as compared to the last, with the tally in the past 24 hours crossing 800 for the first time in seven months, reports Amit Bhattacharya. While the overall numbers remain very low and the rise has been gradual – possibly because of sparse testing and a large number of cases remaining mild – data shows that the JN.1-driven surge is spreading across the country and that infections may already have peaked in Kerala, the state logging the highest counts in the current phase.