India records 16,488 new COVID-19 cases and 113 deaths in last 24 hours

India registered a single-day spike of over 16,000 COVID-19 cases for the third day in a row on Saturday, pushing the infection tally to 1,10,79,979, while the recoveries surged to 1,07,63,451, according to Union Health Ministry data.

A total of 16,488 novel coronavirus cases were reported in a day, while the death toll rose to 1,56,938 with 113 new fatalities, showed the data updated at 8 am on Saturday.

The active case count has further increased to 1,59,590, which comprises 1.44 per cent of the total infections, the data stated.

The number of recoveries reached 1,07,63,451, which translates to a national COVID-19 recovery rate of 97.14 per cent and the case fatality rate stands at 1.42 per cent.

A total of 16,577 new COVID-19 cases were reported in India on Friday, while 16,738 fresh infections were registered in the country on Thursday.

India's COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7; 30 lakh on August 23; 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16. It went past 60 lakh on September 28; 70 lakh on October 11; crossed 80 lakh on October 29; 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed one crore on December 19.

The 113 new fatalities include 48 from Maharashtra , 15 from Punjab and 14 from Kerala.

The death toll from the pandemic stands at 52,041 in Maharashtra, 12,488 in Tamil Nadu, 12,320 in Karnataka, 10,906 in Delhi, 10,263 in West Bengal, 8,725 in Uttar Pradesh and 7,169 in Andhra Pradesh.

For the first time, a coronavirus-linked death has been reported in Lakshadweep. The Health Ministry stressed that more than 70 per cent of the deaths were caused due to comorbidities.

"Our figures are being reconciled with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)," the ministry said on its website, adding state-wise distribution of figures is subject to further verification and reconciliation.


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