Odisha's COVID-19 tally rises to 7,316

Bhubaneswar, Jul 1 () Odisha reported 251 new COVID-19 patients, including an NDRF personnel, taking the state's tally to 7,316, a health department official said on Wednesday.

A 52-year-old COVID-19 patient died in Ganjam district, but the state government attributed the death to terminal lung cancer.

"... to inform that a 52-year-old male COVID positive patient of Ganjam district passed away due to terminal cancer of the lungs with brain metastasis," the department said in a statement.

Seven other coronavirus patients had died earlier and their deaths were attributed to "non-COVID reasons", the official said,

The state has so far confirmed 25 deaths due to coronavirus.

Ganjam, the worst-hit district, accounts for 14 fatalities, followed by five in Khurda, four in Cuttack, and one each in Bargarh and Puri, he said.

Of the total 251 fresh COVID-19 cases, 208 have been detected from quarantine centres where the people returning from different states are lodged for preliminary observation and care. Their contact tracing is underway, he said.

Ganjam district reported the highest of 102 new cases, followed by 32 in Cuttack, 26 in Khurda, 14 in Nayagarh, 12 each in Puri and Bargarh and 10 in Malkangiri. Twelve other districts reported single digit cases.

With another NDRF personnel contracting the infection, the number of disaster response personnel testing positive for the virus has risen to 294. The number of infections in the BSF is 53, the official said.

The total number of active cases in the state stands at 2,094, while 5,189 of the infected have been cured.

The state tested 5,247 samples in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of tests conducted so far to 2,70,678. AAM RG

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