Coronavirus: India records 64,553 new cases in 24 hours; Death toll over 48,000

New Delhi, Aug 14: Union Health Ministry on Friday said that India recorded another steep rise in its single-day cases. The country recorded 64,553 fresh COVID-19 infections in the past 24 hours. With 1,007 more deaths reported in the last 24 hours across the country, the COVID-19 death toll in India has jumped to 48,040.

According to health ministry, India's total COVID-19 count rises to 24,61,191 which includes 6,61,595 active cases and 17,51,556 patients who have been cured from the disease or discharged from hospitals.

It can be seen that India's cumulative coronavirus caseload makes it the third worst-hit country in the world after the United States and Brazil. However, the government maintains that the situation across the country is improving as more number of people are getting cured.

At present, India's recovery rate is over 70 per cent while the death rate stands at 1.95 per cent, among the lowest across the globe.

Nearly 27 million tests have been conducted across the country since January 22 when COVID-19 testing started with a single lab at the Indian Council of Medical Research's (ICMR) National Institute of Virology in Pune.