At least 0.28 per cent patients of 6,86,395 Covid-19 infected cases are on ventilator support while 1.92 per cent are in ICU and 2.62 per cent on oxygen support, the Union Health Ministry on Thursday said adding that a total 20,96,664 people have recuperated so far, pushing India’s recovery rate to 73.91 per cent.
On Thursday, India’s coronavirus caseload rose to 28,36,925 with a record single-day spike of 69,652 infections. The death toll climbed to 53,866 with 977 new fatalities.
With 58,794 recoveries in a span of 24 hours, India’s recovery rate amongst Covid-19 patients has reached nearly 74 per cent (73.91 per cent) reflecting that the number of patients recovering is on a steady rise over the past several months, said the Ministry.
“Focus on standard of care protocol including use of non-invasive oxygen, better skilled doctors, and improved ambulance services have culminated in the desired results,” it said.
The record high recoveries have ensured that the active cases, the “actual caseload” of the country, currently comprise only 24.19 per cent of the total cases.
India also for the first time conducted a record number of more than 9 lakh Covid tests in a span of 24-hours and is poised to see an exponential increase towards its resolve of testing 10 lakh samples daily.
Early identification through testing, surveillance and contact tracing along with focus on timely and appropriate clinical treatment of Covid-19 patients have ensured that not only is the case fatality rate lower than the global average and progressively declining but also a small proportion of the active cases are on ventilator support, the ministry said.
The cumulative tests conducted so far for detection of coronavirus infection in the country has increased to 3,26,61,252.
“As the national average falls below 8 per cent, there are 26 states and UTs that are reporting lower rates than the national average,” the ministry said.
“Although higher number of tests will push the positivity rate initially, but as the experience from several states and UTs has amply depicted, it will eventually lower when combined with other measures such as prompt isolation, effective tracking and timely clinical management,” it stated.