India's records 23,285 new Covid-19 infections in 24 hours, active cases up by 8,011

India recorded 23,285 new cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), which pushed the nationwide tally to 11,308,846, data from the Union health ministry showed on Friday.

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The number of active cases, which has been an area of concern for the central government, stood at 197237 after a staggering 8,011 new cases were recorded in the last 24 hours. The number represents people who are infected with the disease right now. After a recent surge in the number of Covid-19 cases in a few states, the active cases have risen rapidly, raising fears among the experts of yet another wave of the viral disease looming.

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The country recorded 117 fresh fatalities due to the infection in the last 24 hours, which pushed the death toll to 1,58,306, the health ministry data showed. According to the government, 10,953,303 patients have been cured or discharged from hospitals.

Maharashtra, the worst-affected state, has seen a resurgence of the disease. On Thursday, Maharashtra recorded 14,317 new infections - its highest number of new cases this year - a situation that Union health ministry officials separately described as “very worrying”.

Several parts of the state will be put under a lockdown in an attempt to contain a worsening Covid-19 outbreak, chief minister Uddhav Thackeray said on Thursday.

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In Delhi too, there has been a fresh spike in the number of cases. The national capital on Thursday reported 409 new infections of Covid-19, the highest single-day increase in cases in over two months. The seven-day average of daily cases, also known as the case trajectory, in Delhi touched 322 on Thursday - it had dropped to 125 for the week ending February 12, which was the lowest in eight months.

The Centre also released a list of 10 districts that have the highest number of active Covid-19 cases at present. Out of these, only two are outside Maharashtra.

According to ministry data, Pune has 18,474 active cases, which is the highest. It is followed by Nagpur (12,724), Thane (10.460), Mumbai (9,973), Bengaluru Urban (5,526), Ernakulam (5,430), Amravati (5,259), Jalgaon (5,029), Nashik (4.525) and Aurangabad (4,354).