85% Covid cases, 87% deaths from 8 states, says govt
New Delhi, June 27: Eight states, including Maharashtra, Delhi and Tamil Nadu, contributed 85.5 per cent of the active Covid-19 caseload and 87 per cent of the total deaths due to the disease in India, according to the Union health ministry. The ministry said it briefed the group of ministers on Covid-19 on the coronavirus situation in the country and the efforts to boost healthcare infrastructure on Saturday.
“It was mentioned that presently eight states — Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Telangana, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal — contribute 85.5 per cent of active caseload and 87 per cent of total deaths in India,” it said in a statement.
India has reported five lakh Covid-19 cases with the worst single-day jump of 18,552 cases on Saturday. The death toll has climbed to 15,685. The health ministry said it also briefed the GOM during its 17th meeting about the recovery and mortality rates, doubling rate and ramped up testing in various states. It told the GOM 15 Central teams consisting of public health experts, epidemiologists and a senior joint secretary-level officer have been deployed to provide support to the states.
Another Central team is currently visiting Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana to strengthen ongoing efforts for management of Covid-19, it said. The GoM was also briefed about the utility of ITIHAS and Aarogya Setu in contact-tracing and prediction of potential hotspot areas.
Balram Bhragava, the ICMR director general, gave a detailed presentation on the testing strategy. He explained about the serological survey and the increasing capacity for enhanced per-day testing through various tests.
The samples tested in the last 24 hours have increased to 2,20,479, taking the total number of samples tested so far to 79,96,707, the statement said.
India now has 1,026 diagnostic labs dedicated to Covid-19.
◗ A CENTRAL team is currently visiting Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana to strengthen ongoing efforts for management of COVID-19. 15 Central teams have been deployed to provide support to the states.