New Delhi: Kerala and Maharashtra together contributed 78 per cent of the 44,658 new cases of COVID-19 reported in India in the last 24 hours, data shared by Union Health Ministry on Friday showed.
The infection rate recorded in the last 24 hours stood at 2.45 per cent, it added.
Out of 44,658 new cases, 31,007 were recorded in Kerala alone which reported more than 30,000 cases for the second day running. It had reported 31,445 cases of COVID-19 cases on Thursday. Meanwhile, Maharashtra added 5,108 new cases of COVID-19.
The new cases have pushed the cumulative case tally in the country to 32,603,188 whereas the death toll has climbed to 4,36,861 after 496 more people succumbed to the viral infection, according to the data.
The active caseload stands at 3,44,899 after reporting a rise of 11,174 cases in the last 24 hours, the figures showed.
The active cases now account for more than 1 per cent of total cases, the ministry said.
Meanwhile, 33,988 more people recovered from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours taking the number of recoveries to 3,18,21,428. As per the data, the recovery rate now stands at 97.63 per cent
The union ministry stated that the weekly positivity rate (2.1 per cent) has been under 3 per cent for over two months now.
Meanwhile, the daily positivity rate (2.45 per cent) was less than 3 per cent for the last 32 days, it added.
A total of 51,49,54,309 samples were tested up to August 26, 2021, for COVID-19. Of these, 18,24,931 samples were tested on Thursday according to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
Besides, the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination program has administered 61.22 crore vaccine doses among the eligible population aged above 18. (UNI)