India's active Covid-19 cases up by 2,200; tally surges over 10.96 million

The rising cases in the last week have put authorities on guard as parts of the country have witnessed a fresh wave of increased infections.

India on Friday recorded 13,193 fresh cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) and 97 related deaths in the last 24 hours, the Union ministry of health and family welfare data showed.

Active infections in the country stand at 139,542, constituting 1.27% of the cumulative cases recorded in India since January last year. (Bloomberg File Photo )

There was a rise in the active caseload of the country after the number rose by 2,200 between Thursday and Friday morning. Active infections in the country stand at 139,542, constituting 1.27% of the cumulative cases recorded in India since January last year.

The country's death toll has mounted to 156,111, data by the health ministry showed at 8am.

So far, 10,188,007 people have been vaccinated against the coronavirus disease, the health ministry said on Friday, adding that 658,674 were given the jab in the last 24 hours.

The number of samples tested up to Thursday was 20,94,74,862, according to the Indian Council of Medical Research.ICMR also said that 771,071 samples were tested on February 18.

The rising cases in the last week have put authorities on guard as parts of the country have witnessed a fresh wave of increased infections. An analysis by HT shows, three states and one Union Territory have seen their seven-day averages of daily Covid-19 cases rise by between 20% and 69% of lows seen after the end of the first wave of the pandemic.

Maharashtra, among the states in the red zone and the worst-hit by the disease, has seen a strong resurgence of infections with cases rising rapidly over the past week. Punjab, Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir also face the immediate risk of seeing a second Covid-19 surge, according to HT’s analysis. Kerala, meanwhile, remains the only state in the country that is yet to bring its primary wave of infections in control.

The potential risk of a surge in cases amid fears of mutant strains gaining ground, and laxity in adhering to protocols due to Covid fatigue being reported across the country.