Delhi: India is reporting around 2.5 lakh daily COVID-19 cases since the last week. Though the nationwide cases are high, the geometrical progression of rise in cases may have stopped and the country seems to be on the way of flattening its curve.
The cumulative COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country have reached 158.74 crore so far, the Union Health Ministry said on Tuesday. The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Monday wrote to all States and Union Territories and asked them "to immediately increase testing in a strategic manner keeping in view the trend of case positivity in specific areas".
Maharashtra, which leads the COVID-19 tally in India recorded 39,207 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, 26 per cent more than the previous day, and 53 fresh fatalities linked to the infection. With fresh additions, the state's COVID-19 tally rose to 72,82,128, while the death toll increased to 1,41,885. After dropping for five days in a row, daily coronavirus cases marginally rose to 6,149 in Mumbai on Tuesday, while seven more patients succumbed to the infection and 12,810 others recovered, the city civic body said. The new cases rose by 193 from a day ago, but fatalities dropped by five.
Delhi logged 11,684 fresh COVID-19 cases and 38 more deaths due to the disease on Tuesday, while the positivity rate declined to 22.47 per cent. The case tally has climbed to 17,34,181 in Delhi while the death toll due to Covid has gone up to 25,425. The number of active cases in the city stands at 78,112, down from 83,982 on Monday.
The Haryana government on Tuesday extended Covid restrictions in the state till January 28, but allowed gyms and spas to operate with 50 per cent capacity while liquor vends can now open till 10 pm. All sports complexes, swimming pools, gyms and stadia shall remain closed except when being used for training of sportspersons for participation in national and international events, the earlier order had said.All entertainment parks and B2B exhibitions are prohibited, it had said. The government and private offices, except for emergency/essential services, have been advised to function with 50 per cent staff attendance. Haryana has witnessed a huge spike in Covid cases over the past three weeks. To check the spread of the viral infection, the state government has banned people eligible for vaccination but not fully vaccinated from entering shopping malls, cinema halls, restaurants and grain markets, among other crowded places, starting January 1. A night curfew from 11 pm to 5 am is already in force in the state.
West Bengal on Tuesday registered 10,430 new coronavirus cases, 1,045 less than the previous day's count, pushing the tally to 19,17,514. Altogether 34 fresh fatalities due to Covid-19, including 10 from Kolkata, took the toll to 20,155. IIT Kharagpur authorities on Tuesday Imposed restrictions on movement within the campus, except for those on emergency services, in a bid to break the chain of COVID-19 spread.
Also Read: Total of 158.74 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses administered till Tuesday
Active cases in Karnataka crossed 2.5 lakh on Tuesday as the State registered yet another spike logging 41,457 new cases of COVID-19, and 20 fatalities, taking the tally to 32,88,700 and the death toll to 38,465. The state, which has been witnessing a steady surge in cases since the last week of December, had recorded 27,156 fresh infections on Monday, while it was 34,047 on Sunday.Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who on Tuesday issued a series of instructions to district administrations to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, said that the third wave could be managed well, despite rise in cases, if the precautionary measures are good. The Chief Minister today held the COVID-19 vaccination progress review meeting, with the district administrations of about 18 districts. He instructed the Deputy Commissioners to raise the average vaccination coverage of the first and second dose to the level of state average by the end of the month in districts which are lagging below the state average, the CMO statement said. "As the testing is high in Karnataka, the cases too are high. But still we have succeeded in managing it. If the precautionary measures are good then the third wave could be managed well even if the cases see a rise," Bommai said.
Tamil Nadu on Tuesday witnessed 23,888 new cases of COVID-19 thereby pushing the caseload to 29,87,254 while 29 more fatalities took the toll to 37,038 even as the State continued to report a rise in the cases, said the Health Department. As many as 15,036 people recovered in the last 24 hours aggregating to 27,89,045 leaving 1,61,171 active infections. The COVID-19 tally in Goa increased by 2,522 to touch 2,15,171 on Tuesday, the cases being detected from 5,508 tests at a positivity rate of 45.78 per cent. The day also saw six people dying of the infection and 2,476 getting discharged post recovery, taking the toll and recovery count to 3,569 and 1,89,605 respectively.
Meanwhile Union Minister Rajendra Pal Gautam tested positive for COVID-19. Meanwhile, over 80 doctors and paramedics have tested positive for COVID-19 in Government Medical College Srinagar in a single day, taking the total number of infected persons in the tertiary care institution to 546 in January so far.
(With agency inputs)
