Six fresh COVID-19 cases in HP; recovery rate rises to over 71 pc

Six more people, including a Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) personnel, tested positive for COVID-19 in Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday, even as the recovery rate climbed to over 71 per cent with 27 more patients getting cured of the infection, officials said.

A total of 777 patients have recovered from the disease, as of Tuesday evening, out of total 1,084 novel coronavirus cases.

Ten of the 27 patients, who recovered from COVID-19, were from Kangra, followed by eight from Hamirpur, five from Shimla, two from Solan and one each from Mandi and Una districts, Additional Chief Secretary (Health) R D Dhiman said.

Kangra has a maximum of 221 recoveries in the state, followed by 203 in Hamirpur, 99 in Una, 76 in Solan, 47 in Chamba, 37 in Shimla, 34 in Bilaspur, 26 each in Mandi and Sirmaur, five in Kullu and three in Kinnaur.

Nearly 26 per cent of the cases or 282 patients are active and admitted to various COVID care centres of the state, Dhiman said.

Of the fresh cases, two each were reported from Shimla and Una and one each from Kangra and Solan, he added.

In Kangra, a 30-year-old CAPF personnel tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Tuesday, Kangra Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Prajapati said.

A resident of Garli village in Rakkar tehsil, the CAPF personnel returned from Kerala on July 4, he said, adding he is being shifted to a dedicated COVID care centre at Dadh.

Kangra has the most number of active COVID-19 cases in the state at 66, followed by 61 in Hamirpur, 40 in Solan, 31 in Kinnaur, 30 in Una, 14 in Bilaspur, 10 in Chamba, 9 in Shimla, 8 in Mandi, seven in Sirmaur, four in Lahaul-Spiti and two in Kullu.

With 10 deaths, the COVID-19 fatality rate is less than one per cent in the state.

Three COVID-19 patients have died in Hamirpur, followed by two each in Shimla, Mandi and Kangra and one in Solan district.

The deaths include that of a Delhi resident 70-year-old woman, who had been staying at a factory's guest house in Baddi in Himachal Pradesh since March 15. She died at PGIMER Chandigarh on April 2.

Initially, Himachal Pradesh Health Department showed the death of the Delhi woman in its record, but it did not find a mention in the state record later. According to the department, the death of the woman, according to the protocol, should be included in Chandigarh Union Territory as she had tested positive for novel coronavirus there.

However, Chandigarh authorities say the deaths of the patients are included in the record of those places from where they are referred to PGIMER.