How active Covid-19 cases have come down in last 20 days in India

The active cases, the number of people still considered to be infectious, have been falling steadily since October, in a sign that the spread of the infection is slowing down in the country.

The number of active cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) continues to fall across India, and dropped to 1,39,683 on Wednesday, according to Union health ministry data. This is the lowest number of active cases in 264 days.

A healthcare worker collects swab samples for Covid-19 test of passengers at Kurla ST Bus Depot in Mumbai, on Monday. (Pratik Chorge/HT Photo)

The country reported 11,466 fresh cases of Covid-19 and 460 fresh fatalities int he last 24 hours, the ministry's data further showed. With this, India's overall tally of infections reached 3,43,88,579, and death toll at 4,61,849.

The active cases, the number of people still considered to be infectious, have been falling steadily since October, in a sign that the spread of the infection is slowing down in the country. On October 17, the active cases came down to 2,00,000 for the first time.

The number has dropped more than 95 per cent from the peak of India's brutal second wave of infections when it touched 3.75 million on May 9.

Measurement of active cases offers a crucial metric in the country's battle against the disease because it directly reflects the pressure on the healthcare system in a region.

Though the number of active cases is dropping, the central government has warned people against dropping their guards amidst fears of a third wave of infection. The Centre launched the ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ door-to-door vaccination campaign against the disease on November 3 with special focus on second dose inoculations.

India crossed a significant milestone of administering a billion doses on October 21 and since then, the government has been focusing on completing the vaccination of all eligible adults in the country.