State hits new peak, Ludhiana worst hit

Punjab reports 7,041 fresh Covid cases, 138 more fatalities; Bathinda tops the chart with 22 deaths

CHANDIGARH : Punjab on Saturday reported 7,041 fresh Covid cases, highest in a day, bringing the infection count to 3,77,990. The state also registered 138 more Covid-related fatalities, taking the death toll to 9,160, according to a medical bulletin.

Earlier, the state had witnessed the highest single-day spike of 7,014 cases on April 26.

Bathinda recorded a maximum of 22 deaths, followed by 18 in Ludhiana, 12 in Gurdaspur, 10 in Sangrur, eight each in Jalandhar and Amritsar, seven in Fazilka, six in Hoshiarpur, five in Muktsar and four each in Kapurthala and Barnala.

Ludhiana recorded a maximum of 1,600 fresh cases, followed by 936 in Mohali, 653 in Bathinda and 566 in Jalandhar, according to the bulletin.

The number of active cases rose from 55,798 on Friday to 58,229, the bulletin said. The recovery count rose to 3,10,601 after 4,448 more patients were discharged from hospitals, the bulletin said.

Kapurthala village hits 90% of vaccination target JALANDHAR: Nangal Lubana village in Kapurthala, which had 10% positivity rate during the first wave, has vaccinated 90% of its population in the age group of 45 and above. The village now registers 1% positivity rate. Senior medical officer Dr Kiranpreet Sekhon said with the support of villagers, nine special camps were organised and 1,213 people (or 90.92%) above 45 years were vaccinated.

24X7 oxygen bank established in Patiala Patiala: To ensure the uninterrupted supply of oxygen to Covid patients, the Patiala district administration took a unique initiative by launching “oxygen on wheels” service. Deputy commissioner Kumar Amit said any private or government hospital in need of oxygen in the district can avail of the 24x7 oxygen bank service. “Though there was no shortage of oxygen in hospitals in the district, the administration has decided to reserve oxygen cylinders for making these available in need of emergency,” he said.

Meanwhile, industries minister Sunder Sham Arora on Saturday appealed to industry for providing oxygen cylinders to district administrations for use in hospitals.