India added 16,946 fresh Covid cases taking its tally to 1.05 crore cases, the Health Ministry data this morning showed. The number of fresh infections is six per cent higher than Wednesday, when the country registered 15,978 cases.
The number of people who have recuperated from the disease has surged to 1,01,46,763, pushing the national recovery rate to 96.52 per cent, while the Covid case fatality rate stands at 1.44 per cent.
The COVID-19 active caseload remained below three lakh. There are 2,13,603 active coronavirus infections in the country which comprise 2.03 per cent of the total caseload, the data stated.
In the 24-hour period, India, reported 198 deaths linked to the virus, taking the total number of fatalities to 1,51,727. More than 70 per cent of these deaths occurred due to comorbidities, according to the Health ministry. "Our figures are being reconciled with the ICMR," the ministry said on its website.
India's Covid tally had crossed 20 lakh on August 7, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16. It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.
On Saturday, India will begin a mass inoculation drive in which vaccine shots to 30 crore people in what officials say will be the 'world's biggest vaccination programme'.
The government has procured 1.1 crore doses of Covishield produced by Serum Institute and 55 lakh doses of Bharat Biotech's Covaxin vaccine. Both these vaccines were approved by the country's drug regulator for restricted emergency use earlier this month.
Around 3 lakh healthcare workers will be inoculated at 2,934 sites across the country on the first day of the massive nationwide drive, news agency PTI reported quoting sources.
Each vaccination session will cater to a maximum of 100 beneficiaries and the Union Health Ministry has advised states not to organise "unreasonable numbers of vaccination per site per day".
With inputs from agencies
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