219 fresh Covid-19 cases in Punjab, 67% linked to Nanded pilgrims

The maximum 48 fresh cases surfaced in Gurdaspur, followed by 47 in Tarn Taran and 34 in Fazilka, a medical bulletin said.

Punjab reported a big spike of 219 coronavirus disease cases on Tuesday out of which 174 of those infected were pilgrims who returned from Nanded gurdwara in Maharashtra, officials said. With the fresh cases, the state tally rose to 1,451 while it reported two fatalities taking the toll to 25.

Health personnel checking people in EWS colony Dhanas after coronavirus positive cases emerged in the area in Chandigarh. (Keshav Singh/HT Photo)

The Nanded pilgrims now account for 67 % (969) of the total 1,451 coronavirus cases detected so far in the state, a health official said. Officials said the death toll in the state rose to 25 after a 55-year-old Hoshiarpur man and a 22-year-old woman from Amritsar succumbed to the infection. So far, 133 patients have recovered from the disease, officials said.

The maximum 48 fresh cases surfaced in Gurdaspur, followed by 47 in Tarn Taran and 34 in Fazilka, a medical bulletin said.

Twenty-seven people were found infected with the virus in Faridkot; 22 in Sangrur; 15 in Muktsar; 14 in Ludhiana; six in Jalandhar; five in Kapurthala; and one in Patiala.

Five Covid-19 patients—four from Patiala and one from Pathankot--were discharged from hospitals after recovery.

Amritsar continued to top the coronavirus tally with 218 coronavirus cases in the state, followed by Jalandhar (134); Ludhiana (124); Mohali (95); Hoshiarpur (88); Patiala and Tarn Taran (87 each); SBS Nagar and Sangrur (85 each); Gurdaspur (84); Muktsar (64); Faridkot (45); Ferozepur (42); Fazilka (38); Bathinda (36); Moga (28); Pathankot (27); Barnala (19); Kapurthala (18); Mansa (17); Fatehgarh Sahib (16); and Rupnagar (14). A total of 30,199 samples have been taken so far in the state, of which, 23,352 tested negative for the infection. Reports of 5,396 samples are awaited.

(With PTI inputs)