Gujarat recorded 374 fresh COVID-19 cases and 28 deaths on Sunday, taking the total number to 5,428 cases and 290 deaths. As many as 146 patients were discharged after recovery, taking the total number to 1,042.
The State has ramped testing with the infection surging. So far, 80,060 samples have been tested, including 5,944 from 5 p.m. Saturday to 5 p.m. Sunday.
The State’s fatality rate, 5.4%, remains above the national average. Its recovery rate stands at 19.2%, which is substantially below the national average.
Gujarat is the second State after Maharashtra in the number of cases and deaths.
The infection has spread to 31 of the 33 districts, but nearly 85% of the cases and deaths have occurred in the main cities of Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot.
As the single biggest cluster in the State and the second largest cluster after Mumbai, Ahmedabad has reported 3,817 cases and 208 deaths so far. On Sunday, the city reported 274 cases and 23 deaths. The situation is alarming in the city as the fatality rate stands at 5.5% and the recovery rate a mere 14%. A total of 533 patients have recovered and been discharged from hospitals. The number of cases has only gone up despite the strict lockdown measures taken in the city, including two weeks of curfew in the containment zones and in the areas from where the high incidence has been reported.
After Ahmedabad comes Surat, where 30 deaths have occurred and 686 cases have been reported and 156 patients have been discharged. Vadodara has reported 350 cases, 25 deaths and 146 cases of recovery.
The government has decided to continue the lockdown measures in Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot and Vadodara, despite some relaxations allowed by the Ministry of Home Affairs from Monday. “There will not be any relaxation in the main cities, and except for shops selling essentials, everything else will remain shut,” said an official statement.
