With 4,329 deaths, India records highest single-day COVID-19 fatalities

New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI): As India's daily spike of coronavirus cases witnesses a dip with only 2,63,533 fresh infections recorded in the last 24 hours, the number of deaths due to COVID-19 continues to remain alarmingly high with 4,329 more fatalities, the highest toll in a single day since the pandemic began.
According to the Union Health Ministry, the country also saw a massive jump in the number of recoveries with 4,22,436 fresh discharges.
The cumulative caseload stands at 2,52,28,996, including 2,15,96,512 recoveries, 33,53,765 active cases and 2,78,719 deaths.
Karnataka, which has recently emerged as the new COVID-19 hotspot, continues to remain the worst affected state at present with 6,03,639 active infections followed by Maharashtra with 4,45,495 active cases.
As per the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), a total of 31,82,92,881 samples have been tested for COVID-19 up to May 17, of these, 18,69,223 samples were tested on Monday.
A total of 18,44,53,149 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered across the country so far.
On Monday, India's daily spike of coronavirus cases remained below the 3 lakh mark for the first time after 26 days as only 2,81,386 fresh infections were recorded in the last 24 hours. On April 22, the country achieved a grim milestone in its fight against the raging coronavirus as it reported over 3 lakh new cases in a 24-hour period for the first time since the pandemic began last year.
The Union Health Ministry had also informed that a declining trend in the weekly positivity rate was also observed which stood now at 18.17 per cent. It pointed out that the national recovery rate improved to 84.81 per cent while the mortality rate currently stands at 1.10 per cent.
10 States including Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Gujarat and Chhattisgarh cumulatively account for 75.04 per cent of India's total Active Cases, the ministry had informed on Monday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with field officials from states and districts on their experience in handling the COVID-19 pandemic on Tuesday at 11 am.
According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), officials from Karnataka, Bihar, Assam, Chandigarh, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi will take part in the meeting. (ANI)