India has registered a significant achievement in its fight against COVID-19 as the country's total vaccination coverage surpassed the 6-crore mark on March 28, 2021.
6,02,69,782 vaccine doses have been administered through 9,85,018 sessions on March 28, 2021, as per the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW)'s report.
These include 81,52,808 health care workers (HCWs) with 1st dose and 51,75,597 HCWs with 2nd dose; 88,90,046 frontline workers (FLWs) with 1st dose and 36,52,749 FLWs with 2nd dose; 66,73,662 beneficiaries aged more than 45 years with specific co-morbidities with 1st dose and 2,77,24,920 beneficiaries aged more than 60 years.
Eight states - Kerala (5.01 per cent), Madhya Pradesh (5.29 per cent), Karnataka (5.64 per cent), West Bengal (8.07 per cent), Gujarat (8.56 per cent), Uttar Pradesh (8.8 per cent), Rajasthan (9.1 per cent) and Maharashtra (9.5 per cent) - account for 60 per cent of the cumulative vaccine doses given so far. Each of the eight states has administered more than 30 lakh doses.
As on Day-71 of the vaccination drive (March 27, 2021), 21,54,170 vaccine doses were given.
Of the total, 20,09,805 beneficiaries were vaccinated across 39,778 sessions for 1st dose and 1,44,365 HCWs and FLWs received 2nd dose of the vaccine.
Seven States of Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have reported a high number of COVID daily new cases. These states account for 81.46 per cent of the daily new cases registered in the last 24 hours (62,714).
Eight states - Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala - cumulatively account for 84.74 per cent of the new cases reported in the past 24 hours.
Maharashtra has reported the highest daily new cases at 35,726. It is followed by Chhattisgarh with 3,162 while Karnataka reported 2,886 new cases.
Ten states - Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Haryana and Rajasthan - are displaying an upward trajectory in daily new cases.
In addition to this, the total tests conducted across India have exceeded 24 crores while the cumulative Positivity Rate continues to remain below 5 per cent. The daily positivity rate has increased slightly to over 5 per cent (5.04 per cent).
Eight States/UTs - Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Puducherry, Goa, Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra - have a weekly positivity rate higher than the national average of 5.04 per cent. Maharashtra leads all the states with a weekly positivity rate of 22.78 per cent.
India's total Active Caseload has reached 4,86,310 today, comprising 4.06 per cent of the total Positive Cases. A net incline of 33,663 cases recorded from the total active caseload in the last 24 hours.
India's cumulative recoveries stand at 1,13,23,762 today. The national Recovery Rate is 94.59 per cent.
28,739 recoveries were registered in the last 24 hours. Maharashtra has reported the maximum number of single-day recoveries with 14,523 newly recovered cases. 312 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours.
Six states account for 82.69 per cent of the new deaths. Maharashtra saw the maximum casualties (166). Punjab follows with 45 daily deaths and Kerala reported 14 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Fourteen states/UTs - Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Lakshadweep, Ladakh (UT), Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (UT), Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands (UT), Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh - have not reported any COVID-19 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Yesterday, the Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan chaired a high-level review meeting with Additional Chief Secretaries, Principal Secretaries and Secretaries (H&FW) of 12 states - Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Punjab and Bihar - and Municipal Commissioners and District Collectors of 46 districts that are the most affected by rising cases and rising mortality because of COVID-19.
A five-fold strategy was also laid out for adoption by the States and UTs for effective containment and management of the COVID pandemic.
This five-fold strategy includes:
- Exponential increase in testing
- Effective isolation and contact tracing
- Re-invigoration of public and private healthcare resources
- Ensuring of COVID-appropriate behaviour
- A targeted approach to vaccination in districts reporting large numbers.