Coronavirus | Maharashtra leads the table as eight States report surge in daily new cases

India reports 354 deaths in the 24 hours ending 8 a.m. on March 31, 2021

A health worker takes a sample from a woman for COVID-19 test as others wait in queue at ENT hospital in Visakhapatnam, Kerala on March 30, 2021.

India on Wednesday reported 354 deaths in the last 24 hours — the highest since December 17 when 355 COVID-19 fatalities were reported in a single day. This is also the highest single-day spike in casualties this year. According to the Health Ministry, six States account for 82.20% of the new deaths with Maharashtra registering the highest (139) followed by Punjab (64 daily deaths).

Coronavirus updates — March 31, 2021

Eight States, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh, report a surge in the daily new cases with 84.73% of the cases being reported from here. India has registered 53,480 cases in the last 24 hours. “Maharashtra has reported the highest daily new cases at 27,918 followed by Chhattisgarh (3,108) and Karnataka (2,975),’’ said the Ministry.

The active caseload has reached 5,52,566 with Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Punjab and Chhattisgarh cumulatively accounting for 79.30% of the active cases.

Maharashtra leads with more than 61% of the active caseload.

State Helpline numbers for COVID-19

The cumulative recoveries stand at 1,14,34,301 with 41,280 registered in the last 24 hours.

According to the Ministry, Rajasthan, Assam, Odisha, Ladakh (UT), Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh are among the 14 States/UTs that have not reported any COVID-19 death in the last 24 hours.