India on Saturday tested a record number of 4, 20,000 samples in a single day, to detect the coronavirus infection among the population. This is the first time that the country has carried out tests on such a large number of samples in 24 hours since Friday morning, the Union health ministry’s Covid-19 data indicated.
With 4,20,898 samples tested in the last 24 hours, the Tests Per Million (TPM) has increased to 11,485 and the total testing capacity has climbed to 1,58,49,068.
India crossed the 13 lakh mark of Covid-19 patients on Friday evening, overtaking Brazil to become the second country after the United States with a high concentration of coronavirus cases. The country’s Covid-19 tally surged past 13 lakh, just two days after it had crossed the 12 lakh mark. Recoveries too increased side by side, with the number of cured patients touching 8,49,431, according to the Union Health Ministry. The country’s recovery rate at the national level has also climbed a notch to 63.54 per cent.
ALSO READ | Nearly 49,000 fresh Covid-19 take India’s tally to over 13.36 lakh, death toll at 31,358
On Saturday, after reporting 48,916 fresh cases, the country’s coronavirus infection count surged to 13,36,861, while the death toll rose to 31,358 with 757 more people succumbing to the viral infection in the last 24 hours. This is the third consecutive day when Covid-19 cases increased by more than 45,000.
{{/usCountry}}On Saturday, after reporting 48,916 fresh cases, the country’s coronavirus infection count surged to 13,36,861, while the death toll rose to 31,358 with 757 more people succumbing to the viral infection in the last 24 hours. This is the third consecutive day when Covid-19 cases increased by more than 45,000.
{{/usCountry}}There are currently 4,56,071 active cases of the infectious disease in the country.
On Friday, the country started its first human trials of a coronavirus vaccine candidate The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the capital said in a statement that it had administered the first dose of a trial Covid-19 vaccine to a volunteer.
ALSO READ | First dose of Covid-19 candidate Covaxin administered to 30-yr-old at AIIMS Delhi
The vaccine candidate, Covaxin, is among nearly 24 other vaccines that are in clinical trials globally. AIIMS, is among the 12 sites selected by the Indian Council for Medical Research for conducting the two-phase randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials of Covaxin.
The country’s Covid-19 vaccine candidate Covaxin, developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research and the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune, recently got regulatory approval for human clinical trials from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI).