COVID-19: India reports 1.6 lakh cases; Omicron tally crosses 3,600
India on Sunday added 552 new COVID-19 cases involving the Omicron variant. Maharashtra topped the list of worst-hit states with 1,009 total Omicron cases, followed by Delhi (513 cases). Worryingly, India reported nearly 1.6 lakh new COVID-19 cases on Sunday. The active caseload rose to 5.9 lakh, accounting for 1.66% of the total cases. Currently, India's recovery rate stands at 96.98%.
Why does it matter?
India on Sunday reported a marginally higher number of COVID-19 cases than the day before. Notably, the country's daily tally witnessed a 10 times jump from a mere 15,000 cases to 1.6 lakh cases within a fortnight. Meanwhile, India's Omicron tally is also increasing at an alarming rate, breaking daily records multiple times. Among states, Maharashtra is reporting the highest number of COVID-19 cases.
Over 40K patients discharged
According to the Union Health Ministry, India reported a total of 3,55,28,004 COVID-19 cases till Sunday morning. The death toll reached 4,83,790. With 40,863 fresh discharges, the recoveries stand at 3,44,53,603. In the past 24 hours, 1,59,632 new cases and 327 fresh fatalities were reported. The weekly positivity rate was recorded at 6.77%, while the daily positive rate is at 10.21%.
India's second wave peaked on May 7
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 2020. 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, 2021.
Maharashtra adds most new cases
Maharashtra reported 41,434 new COVID-19 cases along with 9,671 more recoveries. Kerala, the second worst-hit state after Maharashtra, reported 5,944 new cases and 2,463 discharges. The third worst-hit Karnataka added 8,906 new cases and 508 recoveries. Tamil Nadu, the fourth worst-hit state, reported 10,978 new cases and 1,525 recoveries. Andhra Pradesh reported 839 new cases and 150 recoveries.
Over 151 crore vaccine doses administered
Till 11 am on Sunday, India administered over 151.6 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses. Overall, over 63 crore people have been fully vaccinated, while over 88.5 crore people have received at least one dose. On Sunday alone, India administered more than 2.23 lakh COVID-19 vaccine doses till 11 am, including over 1 lakh second doses and roughly 1.21 lakh first doses, according to Co-WIN.
India's Omicron tally crossed 3,600-mark
Meanwhile, India's tally of Omicron cases has reached 3,623, with cases being detected in 27 states and union territories. The worst-affected regions include Maharashtra (1,009 Omicron cases), Delhi (513), Karnataka (441), Rajasthan (373), Kerala (333), Gujarat (204), Tamil Nadu (185), and Haryana (123).
PM lauds vaccination of 2 crore children
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday lauded India's vaccination drive for inoculating over two crore teenagers of the age group 15-18 years age group. "Excellent! Well done my young friends. Let us continue this momentum," Modi tweeted. Notably, India started vaccination of teenagers of this age group earlier this week. Till Sunday morning, 2.45 crore teenagers had registered for vaccination.
