NEW DELHI: In the biggest surge in the Covid-19 pandemic in India so far, 1,612 new cases were reported from across the country on Sunday, with Maharashtra (552), Gujarat (367) and Uttar Pradesh (179) registering their highest single-day count of fresh infections.
The huge surge in these states resulted in the total number of coronavirus cases jumping by more than 10% in a single day to 17,325, at the time of going to press.
Maharashtra also recorded 12 new deaths, followed by Gujarat (10), Madhya Pradesh (5) and Telangana (3). Delhi, Rajasthan and Kerala recorded two new deaths each, taking the day’s death toll to 39 and the total to 560.
Meanwhile, there was cheerful news from Goa, which became the first state to declared itself coronavirus-free after the seventh (and last) Covid-19 patient was discharged after treatment.
In Delhi, the total number of Covid-19 cases touched 2,003 with 110 new cases recorded on Sunday. The state plans to scale up testing to identify positive cases in hotspots.
Odisha, where 60 persons have been found positive for Covid-19, is arming its sarpanchs with the powers of a magistrate as part of their anti-virus fight.
The grim march of the virus