New Delhi: On a day when a new daily high of 62,538 cases were reported, India also crossed another Covid landmark — it now officially has over 20 lakh (2 million) cases. Of these, over two-thirds are patients that have recovered from the disease.
In other news, despite a huge increase in testing in the last few days, the test positivity rate is inching once more towards the 10 per cent as Maharashtra’s surge refuses to calm down.
Active cases
The active cases tally reached 6,07,384 after a record 62,538 cases were added in the last 24 hours. This is over 6,000 more than yesterday. The country is now touching new highs every day in fresh cases.
Number of deaths
In the last 24 hours, 886 people died. The total number of Covid deaths in the country now stands at 41,585. This is about a quarter of the toll so far in the US, which is now the global leader both in Covid cases and deaths, though the daily numbers in India are starting to cross everyone.
Mortality rate
The case fatality rate in the country is now just over 2 per cent but there are wide variations among states. However, if the initial sero survey results are anything to go by, the actual death rates among infected people who have not been medically diagnosed may be far lower.
Daily tests
In the last 24 hours, 6,39,042 tests were conducted. This is an important parameter of disease control because it is vital for the daily testing numbers to keep pace with the spread of the disease. The positivity rate keeps track of that.
Positivity rate
Of the samples tested in the last 24 hours, 9.7 per cent came back positive. This is quite a high figure given that the testing numbers are now going up almost every day. Any positivity rate above 10 per cent is reason to worry.
Recovered cases
The total recoveries have jumped to 13,78,105 with 49,769 patients getting better in the last 24 hours.
Ramped up hospital infrastructure and emphasis on efficient treatment of hospitalised patients — through the Standard of Care incorporated in the Clinical Treatment Protocol issued by the Centre — have effectively ensured improvement in the recovery rate.
The seven-day moving average of recovered cases has increased from around 26,000 cases to 44,000 cases in the last two weeks.
Total cases
India crossed the 20 lakh mark, with the total number of reported Covid cases standing at 20,27,074. Of these, just about 30 per cent are active cases, which means this is the pool from which the disease is now spreading in the country.
High burden states
With 6,805 cases and 93 deaths in the last 24 hours, Karnataka continues to be among the states with the highest disease burden in the country. More worrying still is its doubling time — on a base of 1,58,254 cases, it is just a little short of 18 days.
Maharashtra, India’s original hotspot state, still remains a problem area even if the pandemic may have cooled in Mumbai. With a spread in newer areas, the state reported 11,514 cases and 16 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Andhra Pradesh is the most recent entrant in the Covid ‘hall of shame’ but the state has really improved its testing game. That is a silver lining given that its number of daily cases now competes with Maharashtra — 10,328. However, its case fatality rate is below 1 per cent. In the last 24 hours, 72 people died.
Tamil Nadu reported 5,684 cases and 110 deaths in the last 24 hours. The state had been among the best testing states in the country, but other states are threatening to overtake it. Tamil Nadu will, however, draw solace from its case fatality rate.
Delhi reported 1,299 cases and 15 deaths in the last 24 hours. There are many who now believe that Delhi is over the first Covid hump with many hospital beds emptying out and the positivity rate showing a significant decline.
Tests and positive cases
Maharashtra has accelerated in its testing numbers. The state did 82,400 tests in the last 24 hours, ahead of the other high burden states. Delhi too has upped its game after several days of lows, although, over 14,000 of its 20,436 tests are antigen tests.