India records over 1.5 lakh Covid-19 cases: Here are 10 worst affected states
As per the health ministry, 10 states - Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan - are showing a steep rise in daily Covid-19 cases.
India recorded 1,52,879 new cases of Covid-19 on Sunday, hitting another record in the daily tally of cases. The country, which is currently in the throes of a vicious second wave of Covid-19, has been registering a steady increase in the numner of cases on a regular basis.
As per the health ministry, 10 states - Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan - are showing a steep rise in daily Covid-19 cases. They accounted for 82.82 per cent of the new infections on Saturday, the ministry said.
Maharashtra
Maharashtra on Saturday recorded 55,411 new cases, bringing the state-wide tally to 3,343,951. The total number of active cases in the state now stands at 536,682; Pune leads the count of active cases with 102,115, followed by Mumbai with 89,707. The surge has caused Pune and Nagpur to run out of ventilators. Relatives of Covid-19 infected patients sat for a ‘dharna’ demanding Remdesivir injections for the ailing. Reports of Remdesivir being sold in black markets of Pimpri-Chinchwad were also received. The state government has constituted district-wise control rooms to monitor the sale of this life saving injection. Union minister Prakash Javadekar assured the Maharashtra government that 1121 ventilators will be sent to the state in the coming 3-4 days as cases continue to rise.
Chhattisgarh
The vaccination drive in Chhattisgarh, which has been witnessing a surge in cases, has hit a major roadblock due to shortage of doses. Chief minister Bhupesh Baghel said on Saturday that the state has vaccine stock to last two days only. “We have requested the Central government to provide vaccine doses for seven days so that the vaccination drive continues to run smoothly," said Baghel. Chhattisgarh recorded 11,447 cases of Covid-19 on Saturday.
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh recorded 12,787 new cases of Covid-19 on Saturday - its highest single-day spike since the beginning of the pandemic. Chief minister Yogi Adityanath held a meeting to review the Covid-19 situation in the state. Night curfew has been imposed in Noida, Allahabad, Meerut, Bareilly, and Ghaziabad. Entry into religious places have also been capped at five individuals at once.
Delhi
Delhi recorded 7,897 new cases of Covid-19 on Saturday, reporting a drop below the 8,000-mark as testing rates dipped in the national capital. The city conducted 77,374 tests on Saturday as compared to 89,334 tests conducted daily on average over the last seven days. Delhi’s positivity rate, the proportion of samples that test positive, jumped to 10.2% on Saturday, marking a double digit ratio for the first time in 138 days since November 24 of last year. The Delhi government imposed a fresh set of restrictions on Saturday.
Karnataka
Karnataka on Saturday recorded 6,955 fresh Covid-19 cases, registering a dip from the 7,955 cases it had recorded on Friday. Bengaluru Urban alone contributed more than 50 per cent to the state’s tally. An 11-day coronavirus curfew starting from Saturday has been imposed in certain districts of the state including the capital in order to tackle the rising number of cases.
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu reported 5,989 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday, pushing the infection tally to 9,26,816. At 1,977 new cases, capital city of Chennai recorded the most number of infections. Congress candidate Madhava Rao who had recently contested for the state assembly succumbed to Covid-19 on Sunday.
Kerala
Kerala on Saturday recorded 6,194 positive cases of Covid-19, taking the state-wide tally to 11,60,204. Amongst the fresh cases 171 came from outside the state and the rest were infected through contact.
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh reported 4,882 new cases on Saturday. Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan told reporters on Saturday that the state’s active caseload might reach the 1 lakh mark by the end of this month. The state has also been witnessing a shortage of the life saving drug Remdesivir, Indore’s Mahatma Gandhi Memorial College has been designated as the nodal agency for distributing the drug all over the state. The state government has also decided to purchase one lakh injections to meet the requirements, the chief minister told news agency PTI.
Gujarat
Gujarat recorded 5,011 cases on Saturday, taking the state wide tally to 3,42,026. The state’s famous Somnath temple has decided to shut its doors to devotees from April 11 following the sudden spike in cases. The Gujarat State Election Commission has also decided to postpone the Gandhinagar Municipal polls for an indefinite period after chief minister Vijay Rupani urged the poll body to do so. The chief minister said on Saturday that he is not in favour of imposing a state-wide lockdown but local level lockdowns are a welcome step. The state has also been accused of hiding actual Covid-19 data, an allegation the chief minister denied on Saturday.
Rajasthan
Rajasthan recorded 4,401 cases of Covid-19 on Saturday. Chief minister Ashok Gehlot took to Twitter to urge people into following Covid-19 appropriate behaviour, he warned that the second wave has been touted as being more lethal than the first wave. Gehlot also told reporters that the state has been witnessing a shortage of vaccines and the Central government should take the state governments onboard as stakeholders in the vaccination process and not treat them as adversaries.
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