Kerala reported 2,172 new cases of COVID 19 and 1,292 recoveries  on Saturday.

The cumulative case burden of the State ever since the outbreak began has now reached 56,354 cases. With 36,539 persons having recovered from their disease, the number of active cases or patients currently undergoing treatment in hospitals across the State is 19,538.

COVID 19-related mortality has been on the rise in the State in proportion to the increase in cases. On Saturday, 15 more deaths which occurred between Aug 10 and 20 were confirmed as COVID-19 deaths by the State Health department, taking the State’s cumulative death toll to 218. Of these, nine deaths were reported from Thiruvananthapuram, two each from Thrissur and Ernakulam and one each from Malappuram and Kannur.

Of the 2,172 new cases reported, 2,018  cases, including that of 54 healthcare workers, were locally acquired infections. The authorities have not been able to trace the source of infection in at least 153 cases.
 
The capital district of Thiruvananthapuram, which has been consistently reporting between 400 -500 cases every day since the past one month or more, reported 464 cases on Saturday, of which 459 cases, including that of nine healthcare workers were locally acquired infections.

The case graph has been on a steady climb in Malappuram too, where 395 cases were reported on Saturday. In all districts, local transmission of COVID 19 is rampant, with over 80 % of the cases being acquired locally.

Kozhikode has 232 new cases, Palakkad 184, Thrissur 179, Kasaragod 119, Ernakulam 114, Kottayam 104, Pathanamthitta 93, Alapuzha 87, Kollam 77, Kannur 62, Idukki 37 and Wayanad 25 .

The State has currently quarantined over 1.8 lakh persons, of whom, 16,511 persons with mild symptoms are isolated in hospitals.

The number of samples tested in the last 24 hours, utilising various diagnostic modalities  are 37,027.

The number of hot spots in the State at present has gone up to  616 on Saturday.