India records highest single-day Covid spike with over 18K cases
Death toll rises to 15,685; recoveries exceed active cases by 98,493
NEW DELHI: Six days after it recorded four lakh infections, India’s COVID-19 tally raced past five lakh on Saturday with the highest single-day surge of 18,552 cases, while the death toll climbed to 15,685, according to the Union Health ministry data.
The COVID-19 caseload zoomed to 5,08,953, while 384 fatalities were recorded in the last 24 hours, the updated figure at 8 am showed.
It took 110 days for Coronavirus infection in the country to reach one lakh while just 39 days more to go past the five lakh-mark on June 27.
Medical experts have pointed to the ramped-up Covid testing, now available more extensively and at a reasonable price, as a big reason for the spike in cases recently.
The total number of recoveries has fast outgrown the number of active COVID-19 cases, with the difference between the two nearing one lakh fast, the Union Health ministry said on Saturday. The recovered cases have exceeded the active cases by 98,493 as of Saturday.
The number of active cases stood at 1,97,387 while 2,95,880 patients have recovered, the ministry said, adding: “With this encouraging status, the recovery rate is touching 58.13 per cent amongst COVID-19 patients.”
This was the fourth consecutive day when Coronavirus infection increased by more than 15,000 fourth day while there has been a surge of 3,18,418 infections from June 1 till 27.
According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), a cumulative total of 79,96,707 samples have been tested up to June 26 with 2,20,479 samples being tested on Friday, the highest in a day since the beginning of the pandemic.
Of the 384 new deaths reported till Saturday morning, 175 were in Maharashtra, 63 in Delhi, 46 in Tamil Nadu, 19 in Uttar Pradesh, 18 in Gujarat, 13 in Haryana, 12 in Andhra Pradesh, 10 each in West Bengal and Karnataka, seven in Telangana, four in Madhya Pradesh, two in Punjab, one each in Jammu and Kashmir, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand.
Of the total 15,685 deaths reported so far, Maharashtra tops the tally with 7,106 deaths, followed by Delhi with 2,492 deaths, Gujarat with 1,771, Tamil Nadu with 957, Uttar Pradesh with 630, West Bengal with 616, Madhya Pradesh with 546, Rajasthan with 380 and Telangana with 237 deaths.
The COVID-19 death toll reached 211 in Haryana, 180 in Karnataka, 148 in Andhra Pradesh, 122 in Punjab, 91 in Jammu and Kashmir, 58 in Bihar, 37 in Uttarakhand, 22 in Kerala and 17 in Odisha.
Maharashtra has reported the highest number of cases at 1,52,765 followed by Delhi at 77,240, Tamil Nadu at 74,622, Gujarat at 30,095, Uttar Pradesh at 20,943, Rajasthan at 16,660 and West Bengal at 16,190, the ministry data stated.
Full lockdown will be enforced every Sunday in Bengaluru with effect from July 5, the Karnataka government decided after a meeting called by Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Saturday to discuss the pandemic situation. No activity will be allowed on Sundays, except essential services. June 29 onwards, night curfew will start from 8 pm from the earlier 9 pm, but the end time of 5 am will remain, officials said.