COVID-19: India reports 1,581 new cases; 33 more deaths
India on Tuesday reported over 1,500 new COVID-19 cases, a slight increase of around 30 cases from the previous day. The active caseload in the country currently stands at 23,913, which accounts for 0.06% of the total cases. In the past 24 hours, a total of 1,581 new cases and 33 fatalities were reported. Meanwhile, India's COVID-19 recovery rate has increased to 98.74%.
Why does this story matter?
India on Tuesday reported slightly higher COVID-19 cases than the day before. However, the country's improving COVID-19 situation continues to be reflected by declining active cases and positivity rates. Notably, India witnessed a massive spurt in coronavirus infections in December-end and at the beginning of January. The spike in cases—dubbed India's third wave—was attributed to the Omicron variant.
Over 2,700 patients discharged
According to data shared by the Union Health Ministry, India reported a total of 43,010,971 COVID-19 cases till Tuesday morning, while the cumulative death count reached 5,16,543. With 2,741 fresh discharges, the number of total recoveries in the country climbed to 4,24,70,515. Meanwhile, the daily positivity rate and the weekly positivity rate were recorded at 0.28% and 0.39%, respectively.
Kerala adds most new cases
Kerala saw 495 new cases and 850 discharges in the last 24 hours. Maharashtra reported 99 new COVID-19 cases along with 180 more recoveries and zero deaths during the period. Karnataka added 71 fresh cases along with 173 recoveries. Tamil Nadu witnessed 52 new cases and 96 discharges. Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh reported 37 new cases and 42 recoveries.
India's second wave peaked on May 7
India's second wave peaked on May 7, 2021, 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 declined after the second wave peaked, India crossed the three-crore mark on June 23. The country crossed the one-crore mark on December 19, 2020, and the two-crore mark on May 4, 2021.
181.4 crore vaccine doses administered
As of Tuesday, India has administered over 181.4 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses. Overall, over 82 crore people have been fully vaccinated, while more than 97.3 crore people have received one dose. On Tuesday alone, India administered over 1.63 Lakh COVID-19 vaccine doses till 10 am, including over 61,000 second doses and more than 86,000 first doses, according to Co-WIN.
Over 2 crore 'precautionary' doses administered
Meanwhile, India has administered over 2.05 crore "precautionary" doses since January 10. On Tuesday, nearly 2,851 healthcare/frontline workers and more than 15,000 elderly people were given the precautionary dose till 10 am.
Centre considering extending boosters to all above 18: Report
The Centre is reportedly considering expansion of the COVID-19 vaccine booster program to cover all adults. Deliberations are on whether it should be done in phases or made available to all above 18, sources told The Times of India. The government is also evaluating other factors such as vaccine production and supply timelines to assess how soon boosters need to be given.
