Covid-19 cases across India are seeing a sharp increase this March. Registering a spike for the 15th day in a row, the country saw 53,476 new coronavirus infections in a day on Thursday, taking the nationwide Covid-19 tally to 1,17,87,534.
Maharashtra, Punjab, Kerala, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, and Gujarat are the states reporting the highest surge in daily coronavirus cases, accounting for 80.63 per cent of the new Covid-19 infections in the country, the Union Health Ministry said on Thursday. Six states account for 78.49 per cent of the daily deaths due to the infection.
The three states of Maharashtra, Kerala, and Punjab also account for 74.32 per cent the of total active cases in the country which has increased to 3.95 lakh and comprises 3.35 per cent of the total infections.
Maharashtra
The number of cases: Maharashtra recorded 35,952 new coronavirus infections on Thursday, the highest one-day rise since the pandemic began. With 111 fatalities reported on Thursday, the death toll reached 53,795.
Restrictions: Considering the rise in Covid-19 cases in the finance capital of the country, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) also announced that Holi celebrations, on March 28 and 29, will not be permitted in both private or public places in Mumbai.
Punjab
The number of cases: Punjab reported 2,700 coronavirus cases on Thursday, the highest single-day spike this year, while 43 more people died from the pathogen.
Restrictions: Museums in Punjab will remain closed to the public till April 10 in view of the recent surge in Covid-19 cases. Pilgrims coming to Sri Anandpur Sahib to take part in the 'Holla Mohalla' festival should not gather at one place in large numbers, the government said. Additionally, the Union Territory of Chandigarh administration also issued an order stating all public parks, the Sukhna lake area, and the city's main commercial zone, Sector 17 Plaza, would remain out of bounds for the public for Holi celebrations.
Kerala
The number of cases: Kerala recorded 1,989 fresh Covid-19 cases and 12 more deaths on Thursday.
Restrictions: When arriving from a domestic city/state via flght, 14 days of home quarantine is mandatory for all passengers. They must download the Aarogya Setu app and register themselves here.
Chhattisgarh
The number of cases: The number of cases in Chhattisgarh increased by 2,419 on Thursday, the highest single-day addition in the past four months. The death toll rose by 15 to touch 4,026.
Restrictions: Raipur district administration has banned the entry of people in tourism spots and prohibiting religious, social, political, and other programmes, to contain the spread of infection. Holi Milan celebrations or other public gatherings have been banned, although 'Holika Dahan' has been allowed to take place in the presence of only five persons in adherence with Covid-19 measures.
Gujarat
Number of cases: Gujarat reported 1,961 new coronavirus positive cases on Thursday, its highest single-day spike on the fourth consecutive day since March 22.
Restrictions: The government has made it mandatory for people coming from neighboring Maharashtra to carry a negative RT-PCR test report not older than 72 hours. It has banned people from gathering in mosques and other places for Shab-e-Barat that will be observed on March 28. Moreover, Surat Municipal Corporation had earlier made it mandatory for people coming to that city from other states to remain in home isolation for seven days.
Karnataka
The number of cases: Karnataka recorded 2,523 fresh cases of coronavirus and 10 related fatalities, taking the gross to 9.78 lakh and the toll to 12,471.
Restrictions: The government has issued an order not allowing public celebrations, gatherings, or congregations during the coming festivals like Ugadi, Holi, Shab-e-Barat, and Good Friday following a spike in Covid-19 cases.
Ten states including Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Haryana, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh are displaying an upward trajectory in daily new cases, the health ministry highlighted.
India's total Covid-19 active caseload has increased to 3,95,192. A net rise of 26,735 cases is recorded from the total active caseload in a span of 24 hours.
The ministry also said that over 5.31 crore vaccine doses have been administered through 8,61,292 sessions.
These include 79,80,849 HCWs (1st dose), 50,61,790 HCWs (2nd dose), 84,78,478 FLWs (1st dose) and 3 2,37,381 FLWs (2nd Dose), 51,31,949 beneficiaries aged more than 45 years with specific co-morbidities (1st Dose) and 2,32,55,262 beneficiaries aged more than 60 years.
As of day-68 of the vaccination drive (March 24), more than 23 lakh (23,03,305) vaccine doses were given. Out of which, 21,13,323 beneficiaries were vaccinated across 38,243 sessions for 1st dose and 1,89,982 HCWs and FLWs received the 2nd dose of vaccine.
The ministry said that 60 per cent of the cumulative doses (5,31,45,709) have been given in eight states --Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra.
India's cumulative recoveries stand at 1,12,31,650 with 26,490 recoveries being registered in a span of 24 hours. The gap between total recovered cases and the active cases stands at 10,836,458 as of date, the ministry stated.
Also, 251 deaths were reported in a span of 24 hours.
Chhattisgarh reported 29 deaths in a span of 24 hours.
Fourteen states and UTs have not reported any Covid-19 deaths in the last 24 hours. These are Jammu and Kashmir, Goa, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Lakshadweep, Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Ladakh (UT), Sikkim, Tripura, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.
(With inputs from PTI)
