India registered a record number of coronavirus cases in 24 hours, with the death toll rising to 2,872 and the number of total positive cases climbing to 90,927. This marks an increase of 120 fatalities and a record jump of 4,987 new cases in 24 hours. The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 53,946, while 34,108 people have recovered.
Three states have now reported over 10,000 cases, with Maharashtra being the worst hit at 30,706 infections, followed by Gujarat (10,988) and Tamil Nadu (10,585).
The ministry of health said mathematical modelling studies suggested containment of COVID-19 might be possible but success of containment operations "cannot be guaranteed" since there is efficient human to human transmission, the Union health ministry said on Saturday.
It also said there is no approved drug or vaccine for the treatment of COVID-19 as of now and chemoprophylaxis with hydroxychloroquine are recommended for healthcare workers and high risk contacts.
"Since there is efficient human to human transmission, success of containment operations cannot be guaranteed. Mathematical modelling studies suggest containment might be possible," the health ministry said.
The government has drawn out a containment plan as clusters posing high risk of further spread of COVID-19 have emerged. The cluster containment strategy aims to contain the spread of the disease within a defined geographic area by early detection of cases, breaking the chain of transmission and thus preventing its spread to new areas.
Of the 120 new deaths reported since Saturday morning, 67 were in Maharashtra, 19 in Gujarat, nine in Uttar Pradesh, seven in West Bengal, six in Delhi, four in Madhya Pradesh, three in Tamil Nadu and two in Haryana and one each from Andhra Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Rajasthan.
Of the total 2,872 fatalities, Maharashtra tops the tally with 1,135 fatalities, Gujarat comes second with 625 deaths, followed by Madhya Pradesh at 243, West Bengal at 232, Delhi at 129, Rajasthan at 126, Uttar Pradesh at 104,Tamil Nadu at 74 and Andhra Pradesh at 49.
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The death toll reached 36 in Karnataka, 34 Telangana and 32 in Punjab. Haryana has reported 13 fatalities due to the disease, Jammu and Kashmir has 12 deaths while Bihar has registered seven and Kerala has reported four deaths. Jharkhand, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh and Odisha have recorded three COVID-19 fatalities each, while Assam has reported two deaths. Meghalaya, Uttarakhand and Puducherry have reported one fatality each, according to the ministry data.
-Inputs from PTI
