Kerala records 623 new COVID-19 cases

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], July 16 (ANI): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said that Kerala recorded 623 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, taking the total number of confirmed cases to 9,553.
Addressing the media, the Chief Minister said of the new cases, 432 cases were reported from local contacts.
"The district-wise details of the new positive cases are 157 from Thiruvananthapuram district, 74 in Kasargod district, 72 from Ernakulam district, 64 each in Pathanamthitta and Kozhikode districts, 55 from Idukki district, 35 in Kannur district, 25 from Kottayam district, 20 in Alappuzha district. 19 from Palakkad district, 18 in Malappuram district, 11 from Kollam district, five in Thrissur district and four from Wayanad district," CM said.
"Till now, 9,553 COVID-19 cases were confirmed in the State of which 4,880 are active cases. There are at present 1,84,601 people under surveillance in various districts of the state, 1,79,612 in-home or institutional quarantine and 4,989 in isolation at hospitals. 602 persons were admitted to the hospital on Wednesday," He added.
Chief Minister further said that in the last 24 hours, 16,444 samples were tested.
"There are 16 new hotspots today while nine places have been exempted from the list. There are 234 hotspots in Kerala now," he said.
"The situation is still under control even though super spread has happened and clusters have formed in a few places. It is a matter of concern that the numbers have increased. We should exercise more restrictions to contain the spread. Everyone should cooperate and we will be able to restrict the spread without going to the next stage of community spread. At the same time, steps are being taken to increase testing capabilities," he added. (ANI)