Khurda records below 500 Covid cases after 40 days

BHUBANESWAR: With the new infections across the State declining to below 3,000 level for the second consecutive day on Tuesday, the worst-hit Khurda district reported less than 500 cases for the first time in the last 41 days. Khurda had last recorded 423 cases on August 25.

Of the 2,673 new Covid-19 cases detected from 30 districts, maximum 448 were from Khurda, followed by 214 from Cuttack, the second worst hit district, taking the tally to 2.38 lakh. The number of districts reporting more than 100 cases has also come down to seven from 17, a fortnight back. 

The highest number of cases registered in Khurda was 902 on September 26. But since then the number of cases has been below 700 barring two occasions when the daily count was 818 and 766 on September 27 and October 2, respectively. 

Although the spread of infection has reduced significantly in Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada, Nayagarh, Kandhamal, Boudh and Puri, the Western Odisha district of Nuapada that was better placed a week back has become a cause of concern as it recorded 159 cases in last 24 hours, three times the number of cases reported the previous day.

Even as the new cases dropped following the reduced tests, health authorities claimed the declining positivity rate was the indication of the improving situation in the State. On Sunday, 2617 cases were detected. 

The test positivity rate was constant at 6.3 per cent on both the days - Monday and Sunday - when the State recorded below 3,000 cases. While 41,567 tests were conducted on Sunday, as many as 41,840 samples had been tested on Monday.     

The Covid fatality, however, continued to baffle the Government as on an average 15 persons a day are succumbing to the disease for the last more than a week. The death toll soared to 993 as 16 more Covid patients succumbed to the disease during a 24-hour period.

Among the deceased, four were from Balasore, three from Khurda, two from Cuttack and one each from Angul, Boudh, Nabarangpur, Nayagarh, Mayurbhanj, Puri and Sonepur.

The number of active cases has come down to 26,793 after recovery of 3,817 patients. Odisha is at the eighth position in terms of total confirmed cases, active cases and testing. So far, 2,10,217 patients have recovered in the State. 

Meanwhile, the State Government has decided to covert the pulmonary department of SCB Medical College and Hospital at Cuttack into a Centre of Excellence for Covid research and post Covid care. The SCB MCH is now running a 600-bed dedicated Covid hospital.