67 more Covid deaths, 1,964 cases in Punjab

CHANDIGARH/LUDHIANA/ AMRTISAR/JALANDHAR/ PATIALA: Punjab health authorities on Tuesday reported 67 coronavirus deaths and 1,964 fresh cases, pushing the state’s numbers to 1,990 fatalities and 67,547 infections, according to a daily medical bulletin.

Samana MLA Rajinder Singh of the Congress tested positive for the coronavirus on Tuesday. Patiala civil surgeon Dr Harish Malhotra said the legislator has been home isolated.

The Tuesday figures are the second-highest daily count in the state, which had reported its highest 2,110 cases on Monday. Thirteen deaths were reported from Ludhiana; 11 from Amritsar; eight from Patiala; seven from Bathinda; four each from Moga and Jalandhar; three each from Faridkot, Gurdaspur and Sangrur; two each from Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur and Muktsar; and one each from Barnala, Fazilka, Mansa, Mohali and Rupnagar, the bulletin said.

The maximum 311 case were reported in Ludhiana, followed by Jalandhar (265); Amritsar (236); Patiala (206); Bathinda (168); Mohali (127); Gurdaspur (126); Hoshiarpur (104); and Faridkot (83). A total of 2,307 patients were discharged after recovering from the infection. So far, 49,327 people have been cured of the contagion, the bulletin said. There are 16,230 active cases in the state as of now. Eighty-seven patients are on ventilator while 633 are on oxygen support, the bulletin said. A total of 12,41,120 samples have been collected for testing so far in the state, it said.

17 employees of agri dept test positive

In Ludhiana, 17 employees of the agriculture department tested positive. chief agricultural officer Narinder Singh Benipal said tests of around 76 employees were conducted, of which 17 were found infected. “The employees have been isolated and the health department has also taken samples of their family members and other close contacts,” he said.