56 coronavirus deaths, record 5,041 fresh cases in Uttar Pradesh

Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday reported its highest single-day spike of 5,041 COVID-19 cases, while 56 more people died due to the infection.

The total number of cases in the state now stands at 1,31,763 and fatalities at 2,176, Additional Chief Secretary (Medical and Health) Amit Mohan Prasad told reporters here.

However, the state health bulletin put the number of fresh cases at 5,130 in the past 24 hours.

On Monday, the state’s COVID-19 tally stood at 1,26,722.So far, 80,589 of the infected have been treated and discharged. There are now 48,998 active COVID-19 cases.

In the last 24 hours, 12 deaths were recorded in Lucknow, five in Kanpur, four each in Prayagraj and Deoria among others.

Kanpur has reported the maximum number of deaths at 278, followed by Lucknow 161, Meerut 119, Varanasi 107 and Agra 101, it said.

Among the fresh cases, the maximum 831 were reported in Lucknow, 252 in Prayagraj, 248 in Kanpur, 201 in Gorakhpur, 198 in Bareilly and 169 in Varanasi.

Of the 48,998 active COVID-19 patients, 20,818 are in home isolation and 1,535 in private hospitals, Prasad said.

He said over one lakh tests were conducted on Monday, making the state the first in the country to achieve the figure.

“The total number of tests done so far in the state is over 33 lakh,” he said, claiming that the state was conducting three times more tests than the WHO norms regarding it.

He said integrated COVID care and command centres have started functioning all over the state.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has directed officials to set up a new COVID-19 facility with 319 beds at King George’s Medical College here and efforts are being made to start it by the month-end, Additional Chief Secretary, Home, Awanish Awasthi said.