At the end of Unlock-1, India's COVID-19 tally rises to 5.66 lakh cases

As the month-long Unlock-1 ends on Tuesday (June 30), India reported nearly 66 per cent of its COVID-19 cases in June alone, and a concerned Prime Minister Narendra Modi said people not strictly adhering to rules and precautions as they did during the lockdown was a cause of worry.

India’s COVID-19 tally climbed to 5,66,840 with a single day spike of 18,522. From June 1, when relaxations were introduced under Unlock-1, the country has reported 3,76,305 cases.

Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Gujarat account for nearly two-third of the total cases till now.

The death toll rose to 16,893 on Tuesday after 418 new fatalities. It was the seventh day in a row that over 15,000 cases have been reported in the country.

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The number of active cases stands at 2,15,125, while 3,34,821 people have recovered, and one patient has migrated, according to the updated data at 8 AM.

“Thus, around 59.07 per cent of patients have recovered so far,” an official said.

Medical experts have pointed to the ramped up COVID-19 testing, now available more extensively and at a reasonable price, as a big reason for the spike in cases recently.

According to the ICMR, a cumulative total of 86,08,654 samples have been tested up to June 29 with 2,10,292 samples been tested on Monday.

Unlock-2

The government on Monday issued guidelines for the month-long Unlock 2 beginning July 1, during which more domestic flights and passenger trains will be allowed in a calibrated manner, but educational institutions, Metro Rail services, cinema halls and gyms will remain shut.

Night curfew shall remain in force between 10 pm and 5 am, except for essential activities.

PM speaks

Speaking on the coronavirus situation, PM Modi, in his address to the nation on Tuesday, said India is in a better position compared to many countries of the world, as timely imposition of lockdown and other decisions have saved lakhs of lives.

He, however, lamented that there is an increasing “negligence” in personal and social behaviour during the easing of restrictions and urged them to be more vigilant as Unlock-2 begins on Wednesday.

From the states

On Tuesday evening, Maharashtra, which has the highest number of cases, said its tally is 1,74,761 with 4,878 new patients while the death toll has risen to 7,855 after 245 more fatalities.

Tamil Nadu’s COVID-19 tally crossed the 90,000 mark, overtaking Delhi to occupy the second spot among the worst affected, with nearly 4,000 fresh cases for the third consecutive day. Chennai recorded the highest single day increase of 2,393 cases, a state health department bulletin said.

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Karnataka breached the 15,000 mark on Tuesday, overtaking Haryana and Andhra Pradesh.

As of June 30 evening, cumulatively 15,242 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state, which includes 246 deaths and 7,918 discharges, the state health department said in its bulletin.

The total number of case in Delhi has crossed 85,000. The coronavirus recovery rate in the national capital reached 66.03 per cent on June 29.

In June, the national capital added over 64,000 fresh cases to its tally, while over 47,357 patients recovered, were discharged or migrated.

According to the Union ministry data, the number of cases in Gujarat is at 31,938, Uttar Pradesh at 22,828, West Bengal at 17,907 and Rajasthan at 17,660.

According to the ministry, the number of COVID-19 cases has gone up to 15,394 in Telangana, 14,295 in Karnataka, 14,210 in Haryana, 13,891 in Andhra Pradesh, and 13,370 in Madhya Pradesh.

It has risen to 9,640 in Bihar, 7,752 in Assam, 7,237 in Jammu and Kashmir and 6,859 in Odisha. Punjab has reported 5,418 novel coronavirus infections so far, while Kerala has 4,189 cases.

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A total of 2,831 people have been infected by the virus in Uttarakhand, 2,761 in Chhattisgarh, 2,426 in Jharkhand, 1,380 in Tripura, 1,227 in Manipur, 1,198 in Goa, 964 in Ladakh and 942 in Himachal Pradesh.

The Tripura government said it is not thinking of extending the coronavirus lockdown as the situation in the state is “stable”.

“Even though the lockdown has been extended in three northeast states — Assam, Manipur and Meghalaya — we are not thinking on that line now. Our condition is stable and our frontline workers are doing a commendable job,” Education Minister Ratan Lal Nath said on Tuesday.

Arunachal Pradesh reported 187 cases, Mizoram has 148 cases, Andaman and Nicobar Islands has 90, Sikkim has registered 88 infections so far, while Meghalaya has recorded 47 cases.

(With inputs from agencies)