COVID-19 recoveries exceed active cases by 98,493: Health ministry

New Delhi, June 27: The total number of recoveries has fast outgrown the number of active COVID-19 cases, with the difference between the two nearing one lakh fast, the Union health ministry said on Saturday.

The recovered cases have exceeded the active cases by 98,493 as of Saturday. The number of active cases stood at 1,97,387 while 2,95,880 patients have recovered, the ministry said, adding, "With this encouraging status, the recovery rate is touching 58.13 per cent amongst COVID-19 patients."

India's COVID-19 tally raced past the five-lakh mark on Saturday with the biggest single-day surge of 18,552 cases, while the death toll climbed to 15,685 with 384 fatalities.

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), a cumulative total of 79,96,707 samples have been tested up to June 26 with 2,20,479 samples being tested on Friday, the highest in a day since the beginning of the pandemic.

The top 15 states in terms of absolute numbers of COVID-19 recoveries are Maharashtra with 73,214, Gujarat with 21,476, Delhi with 18,574, Uttar Pradesh with 13,119, Rajasthan with 12,788, West Bengal with 10,126, Madhya Pradesh with 9,619, Haryana with 7,360, Tamil Nadu with 6,908, Bihar with 6,546, Karnataka with 6,160, Andhra Pradesh with 4,787, Odisha with 4,298, Jammu and Kashmir with 3,967 and Punjab with 3,164.

Top 15 states in terms of recovery rate are Meghalaya at 89.1 per cent, Rajasthan 78.8 pc per cent, Tripura 78.6 per cent, Chandigarh 77.8 per cent, Madhya Pradesh 76.4 per cent, Bihar 75.6 per cent, Andaman and Nicobar Islands 72.9 per cent, Gujarat 72.8 per cent, Jharkhand 70.9 per cent, Chhattisgarh 70.50 per cent, Odisha 69.5 per cent, Uttarakhand 65.9 per cent, Punjab 65.7 per cent, Uttar Pradesh 65 per cent and West Bengal 65 per cent.

As a testimony to the ramped-up testing facilities, India now has 1,026 diagnostic laboratories dedicated to COVID-19. This includes 741 in the government sector and 285 private laboratory, the ministry said.