The second novel coronavirus wave that India is witnessing is proving to be more destructive than the first wave as the country is seeing twice the number of maximum active Covid-19 cases that was seen last year, officials stated on Wednesday.
"There are 21,57,000 active cases in India currently i.e. twice the number of maximum active 19 Covid-19 cases last year," Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan said in a press conference.
He also added that more than 13 crore people have been vaccinated in the country so far including 30 lakh doses administered in the last 24 hours.
He further said that about 87 per cent of health workers and 79 per cent of frontline workers have been administered the first dose of vaccine.
The situation in the country continues to deteriorate, India today reported the highest single-day surge of Covid-19 cases with over 2.95 lakh new infections and 2,023 deaths in the last 24 hours. Both figures are the highest ever since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the latest data released by the Union ministry of health and family welfare.
The total number of positive cases in the country stands at 1,56,16,130, while the death toll has risen to 1,82,553 with a record 2,023 new fatalities, the Union Health Ministry data showed. The death toll increased to 1,82,553 with a record 2,023 new fatalities, the Union Health Ministry data showed. The number of patients who have recovered from the disease surged to 1,32,76,039, while the case fatality rate has further dropped to 1.17 per cent, the data stated.
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According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), a total of 16,39,357 samples were tested on Tuesday. A total of 27,10,53,392 samples have been tested so far. Meanwhile, the cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccinations administered in the country stands at 13,01,19,310.