For the first time on Monday, the number of COVID-19 deaths on a single day in West Bengal crossed the 50 mark with 53 deaths, taking the total fatalities to 1,731. As many as 2,716 cases were recorded taking the total tally in the State to 78,232, of which 21,683 were active. The discharge rate in the State stands at 70.07%.

Of the 53 deaths, 21 deaths were recorded in Kolkata and 21 in North 24 Parganas district. Kolkata, with 820 deaths, accounted for more than half the deaths across West Bengal. North 24 Parganas is the second most affected district with 389 deaths.

The State government on Monday also issued revised dates for the biweekly lockdown which is in place. This, the government said, was in response to “several requests and appeals from people to relax complete lockdown on certain dates coinciding with some festivals”. The new dates for total lockdown are August 5, 8, 20, 21, 27, 28 and 31. The change of dates were announced to avoid it coinciding with Id ul-Adha, Raksha Bandhan, Independence Day, and Ganesh Chaturthi.