New Delhi: India witnessed a 6.7 per cent jump in new Covid cases as it added 2.64 new infections over the last 24 hours, the highest in 239 days. Deaths from Covid rose by 315, with total fatalities now at 485,350, the Health Ministry said.
India has reported 5,753 cases of the Omicron variant, according to the Health Ministry. There has been a 4.83 per cent increase in Omicron cases since Thursday.
The active cases have increased to 12,72,073, the highest in 220 day. The active cases now comprise 3.48 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has decreased to 95.20 per cent.
The daily positivity rate was recorded at 14.78 per cent while the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 11.83 per cent. The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive has exceeded 155.39 crore, the ministry said.
Maharashtra, one of the worst-hit states by the Covid pandemic, added 46,406 new coronavirus cases, 317 less than a day before, and 36 more fatalities linked to the infection. No new Omicron infection was reported in the state, it said.
Delhi saw the biggest-ever daily spike in Covid infections Thursday with 28,867 new Covid cases as the positivity rate surged to 29 per cent, indicating that for every three tests conducted, one person is testing positive.
Kerala added more than 10,000 fresh cases for the second day running with the state logging 13,468 new infections which raised the caseload to 53,17,490. The southern state had reported 12,742 cases a day ago. Kerala also reported 117 deaths which raised the total fatalities in the state to 50,369, according to a government release.
One cannot conclude that the peak of the ongoing wave of the coronavirus pandemic is over in Delhi solely on the basis of hospital admission data, experts said Thursday as the number of cases and positivity rate continue the upward trend in the city.
The deadly wave of COVID-19 Delta variant stole 240,000 lives in India between April and June in 2021 and disrupted economic recovery, a United Nations report said on Thursday, warning that “similar episodes” could take place in the near term. The flagship United Nations World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) 2022 report also said that with the highly transmissible Omicron variant unleashing new waves of infections, the human and economic toll of the pandemic are projected to increase again.
India has entered the third year of the fight against “one of the biggest epidemics in 100 years”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Thursday after he held a meeting with Chief Ministers to discuss the unprecedented spike in Covid infections. Vaccination is the best bet against coronavirus, PM Modi insisted, adding that about 70 per cent of the adult population in the country has got both doses.
Covid cases have been on the rise since late last year due to the fast-spreading Omicron variant, first identified in Botswana and South Africa. The total number of Covid-19 registered worldwide since the start of the pandemic topped 300 million on Friday, according to an AFP count based on official figures.
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