Covid’s national count of cases on Saturday was 45,056, a day after the notification of 46,783 new cases, according to TOI’s Covid database of real-time data from state governments.
Kerala registered 31,265 new cases, again accounting for about 70% (69.4%) of all infections detected in the country on Saturday. The positivity rate of the day’s test in the state fell slightly to 18.67%, from 19.22% recorded the day before.
On Saturday, active cases in Kerala exceeded 2 lakh. The southern state now has more than 55% of the 3.7 lakh active coronavirus cases in the country. In the last five days since the rise of post-Onam infections began, the state has added nearly 50,000 active cases. During this period, 1,49,814 new cases have come to light in the state.
Elsewhere, Maharashtra registered 4,831 new cases on Saturday, the second day in a row that daily figures in the state have surpassed the count on the corresponding days last week. Overall, however, cases in Maharashtra still appear to be declining, albeit painfully slowly.
Mizoram is also in the midst of a minor peak of infections. The northeastern state recorded 888 new cases on Saturday, a day after registering 905 new infections, which was the highest single-day count since Aug. 10.
India reported 444 deaths from the virus on Saturday, with Kerala recording 153 deaths, Maharashtra 126, Odisha 68, Tamil Nadu 21 and Andhra Pradesh 19.
The night curfew in Kerala from Monday amid rising cases
Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan addressed the media on Saturday after a highly speculated 36-day interregnum, even as the rise in Covid cases continued, with the state reporting 31,625 new cases, 153 dead and a test positivity rate of 18.67%.
The CM announced that the Covid review meeting had decided that the night curfew would apply to the state from Monday (10pm to 6am).
There would be a triple blockade in local bodies where the weekly proportion of infection per infection is over 7% and IPS officers will be in charge in each district from Monday to coordinate preventive measures, the CM said . Local bodies have been asked to ensure that there is an adequate stock of vaccines.