India reports 30,006 fresh COVID-19 cases, 442 deaths in past 24 hrs; tally over 98.26 lakh

New Delhi: India’s COVID-19 caseload climbed to 98.26 lakh on Saturday after 30,006 fresh infections were reported in a day, said the Union health ministry. With 93,24,328 patients being cured, the national recovery rate was pushed to 94.88 percent The total coronavirus cases mounted to 98,26,775 and the toll climbed to 1,42,628 with the virus claiming 442 lives in a span of 24 hours, the data updated at 8 am showed. There are 3,59,819 active cases of coronavirus infection in the country which comprise 3.66 percent of the total caseload. The COVID-19 case fatality rate further declined to 1.45 percent. According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), a cumulative total of over 15.26 crore samples have been tested up to 11 December. At least 10,65,176 samples were tested on Friday alone. India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on 7 August, 30 lakh on 23 August and 40 lakh on 5 September. It went past 50 lakh on 16 September, 60 lakh on 28 September, 70 lakh on 11 October, crossed 80 lakh on 29 October and 90 lakh on 20 November. The 442 new fatalities include 87 from Maharashtra, 60 from Delhi, 50 from West Bengal, 29 each from Kerala and Punjab, 23 from Haryana, 16 from Karnataka and 14 each from Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. A total of 1,42,628 deaths have been reported so far in the country including 48,059 from Maharashtra followed by 11,928 from Karnataka, 11,870 from Tamil Nadu, 9,934 from Delhi, 8,966 from West Bengal, 8,025 from Uttar Pradesh, 7,049 from Andhra Pradesh, 5,036 from Punjab and 4,148 from Gujarat. The health ministry stressed that more than 70 percent of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities. “Our figures are being reconciled with the Indian Council of Medical Research,” the ministry said on its website, adding that state-wise distribution of figures is subject to further verification and reconciliation.