Coronavirus: India reports 25K+ cases; active infections drop under 1%
India on Tuesday reported over 25,000 new COVID-19 cases, along with over 350 fresh deaths. The number of active infections has now dipped under 1% as the recovery rate reached 97.68%, the highest since March 2020. The daily positivity rate stood at 1.94% and it has remained under 3% for the last 28 days. The weekly positivity rate was recorded at 1.90%.
India's tally crosses 3.24 crore; 4.35 lakh dead
According to the Union Health Ministry, till Tuesday morning, India reported a total of 3,24,74,773 COVID-19 cases. The death toll has reached 4,35,110. So far, 3,17,20,112 patients have recovered, while 3,19,551 cases involve active infections. In the past 24 hours alone, India recorded 25,467 new infections, 39,486 more discharges, and 354 fresh fatalities. 58,89,97,805 vaccine doses have been administered so far.
India's second wave peaked on May 7
To recall, India's second wave peaked on May 7, when 4.14 lakh single-day cases were reported, over four times the number of cases reported during the first wave in mid-September. Although infections have declined since the second wave peaked, India crossed the three crore-mark on June 23. India had crossed the one crore-mark on December 19, 2020, and the two crore-mark on May 4.
Over 52% new cases concentrated in Kerala
Maharashtra reported 3,643 new COVID-19 cases along with 6,795 more recoveries. Kerala, the second worst-hit state after Maharashtra, reported 13,383 new cases and 21,942 discharges. Meanwhile, the third worst-hit Karnataka added 1,151 new cases and 1,442 recoveries. Tamil Nadu, the fourth worst-hit state, reported 1,604 new cases and 1,863 recoveries. Andhra Pradesh reported 1,002 new cases and 1,508 recoveries.
1.6 crore in India miss second vaccine dose: Data
On another note, at least 1.6 crore people in India have missed their second doses of COVID-19 vaccines, government data showed. According to the data, 1.6 crore people haven't gotten their second doses even though 16 weeks (the longest recommended gap between two doses) have elapsed since they were administered the first dose. Among them, over one crore are those aged over 60 years.
Pfizer gets full approval by USFDA
Separately, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday granted full approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for people aged over 16. Earlier this month, it was reported that India is in talks to procure 50 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The company hasn't sought permission for its shot to be used in India, despite a fast-tracked process for regulatory approval.
