The seven-day rolling average of daily Covid cases rose for the ninth consecutive day, crossing 13,000 on Tuesday, in the most sustained surge in the pandemic in the country since infections peaked in mid-September last year.
The seven-day daily average has risen by more than 1,800 cases, going from 11,430 on February 14 to 13,267 on Tuesday. Prior to this, the longest period of uninterrupted rise in cases post September was a six-day period from November 19 to 24.
India recorded at least 13,579 fresh cases on Tuesday. The total excludes Telangana, where the state declared it would stop releasing daily numbers, and Assam, from where the latest update had not been received till midnight.
Daily deaths climbed to 102, after staying below 100 for the past three days, 51 of which were from Maharashtra which again reported more than 6,000 fresh cases (6,218). Kerala recorded the second-highest count at 4,034. Together, the two states accounted for over 75% of India’s count. Punjab, meanwhile, registered a two-month high with 426 cases, while cases surged in Gujarat as well.