Record 2,496 new COVID cases in Odisha push tally to 57,126; death toll reaches 333

Odisha on Saturday reported record 2,496 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the state's tally to 57,126, a health department official said. Nine coronavirus patients also succumbed to the disease, following which the death toll rose to 333, he said.

The state also reported recovery of as many as 1,521 patients taking the total number of people cured of the disease to 40,727, which is 71.29 per cent of the state's total caseload.

Odisha now has 16,013 active COVID-19 cases. Of the new infections, 1,591 were reported from among the people lodged in various quarantine centres, while 905 were detected during contact tracing. The fresh cases were found in 29 of the state's 30 districts. Khurda district, of which state capital Bhubaneswar is a part, reported the maximum number of new cases at 378, followed by Ganjam at 327, Balasore at 165, Sundargarh at 156, Rayagada at 146 and Koraput at 133.

"Regret to inform of the demise of nine COVID positive patients while under treatment in hospitals," the Health and Family Welfare Department said in a twitter. Of the nine fatalities, four were reported from Sambalpur district, two from Cuttack and one each from Ganjam, Keonjhar and Nayagarh. Besides, 53 more COVID-19 patients have lost their lives in the state but these fatalities have been attributed to other reasons.

Odisha also tested record 47,887 samples for COVID-19 on Friday. So far, the state has conducted 8,55,713 tests. The state government in a statement said that there has been a sharp decline in the rate of positivity. On July 21, the rate of positivity was 10.78 per cent while it has come down to 5.2 per cent on August 14.