Guwahati: Assam's COVID-19 count crossed the 1600-mark, with 60 more people testing positive for the novel coronavirus on Wednesday, state Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.
With the fresh cases, the state's tally increased to 1,621, he said.
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Of the 60 new patients, 38 are from Dhubri, 18 from Golaghat and four from Nagaon district, the minister said.
Of the 1,621 total cases, 1,277 are active, while 337 people have recovered, four died and three migrated, he said. As many as 48 new cases were reported late on Tuesday night, taking the previous day's total to 76.
Fifty-three patients were discharged from hospitals on Tuesday after they recovered from the disease, Sarma said. Eighteen were released in Silchar, 12 in Golaghat, 19 in Guwahati, two in Barpeta and one each in Dhemaji and Diphu, the minister said.
Meanwhile, a repatriation flight carrying 37 passengers from Russia under the Vande Bharat Mission landed at the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati well past midnight, an Airport Authority of India (AAI) spokesperson said.
Earlier, 30 of the 155 passengers brought to Assam in a repatriation flight from Kuwait on May 29 had tested positive for COVID-19. Altogether, 64 air travellers have tested positive for the novel coronavirus so far since the resumption of flight operations on May 25.
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has, meanwhile, approved the Defence Research Laboratory (DRL), Tezpur as an authorised COVID-19 testing centre.
Assam already has seven laboratories where samples are being tested and the DRL will be its eighth testing facility. Some samples are also being outsourced to laboratories outside the state.
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The minister had earlier said that the state government's aim in June will be to reduce institutional quarantine and increase sample testing. The number of cases in Assam has witnessed a steep increase since inter-state movement was allowed.
(PTI report)
