J&K sees highest single-day spike for third day in a row

The UT logged 573 new cases while three patients succumbed to the infection on Sunday, pushing the death toll to 2,008

Jammu and Kashmir recorded 573 new Covid cases on Sunday, the highest single-day hike this year, taking the Union Territory’s case tally to 1, 33,012.

Three women being tested after they were caught without face masks in Jammu on Sunday. (PTI)

Jammu and Kashmir has been logging over 500 cases per day for three days — the highest count in four months. The highest single-day spike in virus cases immediately before Sunday had been reported on December 3 when the UT had detected 582 cases.

Three patients — one in Jammu and two in Kashmir — succumbed to the infection on Sunday, taking the death toll to 2,008.

Of the new cases, 451 are from Kashmir division while 122 are from Jammu. Officials said with 208 cases, Srinagar had the highest number of new infections, followed by 92 in Jammu, 84 in Baramulla district, 41 in Budgam, 37 in Kulgam and 18 in Bandipora. Eight districts reported single digit cases while two districts in Jammu saw no infections.

The number of active cases, which has been rising steadily since March, reached 3, 955, officials said. There are 3,033 active cases in Kashmir division, of which 1,526 are in Srinagar. Of the 922 active cases in Jammu division, 661 are in Jammu district.

As many as 1, 27,049 people have recovered from the infection so far, taking the recovery rate to 95.51%. Over 6.21 million Covid tests have been conducted in the UT, so far.

In March, the UT had recorded 4,519 Covid-19 infections, an increase of 133% against February.