BHUBANESWAR: Odisha on Saturday reported 570 new Covid-19 cases, taking the total to 12,526, and six deaths.

The State had reported first 5000 Covid-19 positive cases and 15 deaths in about 100 days, but has added 5,210 cases and 36 deaths in the last 10 days.

Of the infections found between July 1 and 10, nearly 30 per cent (pc) were local contacts and rest were in quarantine.

Although the State Government continues to deny community transmission, virologists begged to differ as one-third people without having any travel history were infected during a short span of time.

While the daily positivity rate has increased from 5.73 pc to 11.69 pc (July 9), local cases rose from 15.7 pc to 32.71 pc during the period.

What has pressed the panic button is that both the daily positivity rate and growth rate are above the national average.

Along with the rise in infection, the number of deaths has also doubled. However, the only silver lining is 3,007 patients have also recovered during the period.

Meanwhile, with 570 new cases, the number of total confirmed cases soared to 12,526.

Six more Covid-19 patients, including two women, died in the State taking the death toll to 79.

The persons who succumbed to the highly infectious disease included two men, aged 55 and 72 from Ganjam and two men, aged 70 and 46 from Puri and Cuttack, besides a 56-year-old woman from Bhubaneswar.

Another 62-year-old woman of Kendrapara who died due to underlying diseases had brain tumour. The Health department, however, attributed the cause of 61 deaths to Covid and the rest 18 to other comorbidities.

The data of new Covid-19 cases this month revealed that though the total number of new cases reported in the State is steadily on the rise, the number of cases reported from the four hotspot districts Ganjam, Khurda, Cuttack, Jajpur and Sundarggarh has been more or less the same.

Additional Chief Secretary of Health department PK Mohapatra said the Government has ramped up infrastructure in Covid Hospitals to accommodate more patients.

“Around 500 additional beds for Hi-Tech hospital, 800 beds for SUM Hospital at two places and 141 beds with 15-bed ICU facility at Neelachal Hospital have been approved,” he said.

After 388 patients recovered on Saturday, the number of active cases stood at 4,087. While 123 patients have been admitted in the ICU, 25 among them are on ventilator support. All ICU beds in KIMS and SUM Covid hospitals have been occupied.