India added 96,424 coronavirus infections in 24 hours, taking its tally past the 52-lakh mark, the Health Ministry data this morning showed. The number of cases in the country now stand at 52,14,678 including 10,17,754 active cases. In the 24-hour period, India, which is the second worst-hit country, reported 1,174 deaths linked to the virus, taking the total number of fatalities to 87,372. About 41 lakh patients have recovered from the infection in the country, pushing the recovery rate to 78.86 per cent.
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About 60 per cent of the country's active coronavirus cases are concentrated across five worst-hit states, the government said today. It also said that there are 13 States and Union Territories that have less than 5,000 active cases of COVID-19.
Maharashtra remains the worst affected state by the pandemic with a tally of over 11.2 lakh cases. More than 37 per cent of cumulative deaths reported so far in the country are from the western state. State capital Mumbai has extended a ban on large gatherings and restrictions on moment till September 30 for the coronavirus crisis.
On Friday, Andhra Pradesh became the second state after Maharashtra to report over six lakh cases. The southern state has reported a positivity rate of 12.31 per cent against the national average of 8.45 per cent.
In neighbouring Karnataka, a BJP Rajya Sabha member from the state died yesterday due to COVID-19. 55-year-old Ashok Gasti, who was a first-time member, was critically ill and was admitted to Manipal Hospital.
Delhi recorded 4,432 new cases in the last 24 hours. The national capital has been witnessing four-figure count since August 18. Delhi has seen an increase of 45 per cent in the number of containment zones in the last 10 days. Home isolation cases of COVID-19 also jumped by over 50 per cent to reach 16,576 during the period, according to official data.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who yesterday received birthday greetings from political leaders and celebrities from across India and the world, urged people to wear masks and follow all the government-mandated coronavirus protocols.
India is only the second country in the world, after the United States, to record more than 50 lakh cases. According to Reuters, India, which has been reporting more new daily cases than the United States since mid-August, accounts for just over 16% of global known cases.
Even though the daily cases are among the highest in the world, the caseload, when compared with the population, is "among the lowest", the government has said.
US biotech firm Moderna and Pfizer, among the nine companies in the late stages of clinical trials for a Covid-19 vaccine, have published the complete blueprints of their study following calls for greater transparency. Pfizer is currently carrying out Phase 3 trials in the US.
Global coronavirus cases exceeded 30 million on Thursday, according to news agency Reuters. North and South America combined still accounted for almost half of the global cases.
