India’s tally surges to 3.43 lakh
New Delhi, June 16: India’s COVID-19 tally reached 3.43 lakh on Tuesday after recording 10,667 fresh cases while 380 more patients succumbed to the virus, taking the death toll to 9,900. Of the fresh cases, maximum 2,786 surfaced in Maharashtra, followed by 1,843 in Tamil Nadu.
Delhi and Haryana added 514 cases each, 511 in Gujarat, 476 in Uttar Pradesh and 407 in West Bengal. In terms of fatalities, highest 178 were reported again from Maharashtra, while 73 registered in Delhi, 44 in Tamil Nadu and 28 in Gujarat.
The day was also marked by Prime Minister Narendra Modi holding a virtual meeting with chief ministers and Lt Governors of 21 states and union territories to discuss ongoing ‘unlock’ phase and the road ahead.
After remaining under lockdown for more than two months, India significantly lifted the restrictions at the starting of June to bring the battered economy back to life and called it ‘unlock phase’.
In the meeting, PM Modi stated that economy has started to revive which can be seen by power consumption going up, doubling of fertiliser sales and 12-13 per cent increase in Kharif sowing. Moreover, digital payments and toll collection have shown an uptick.
‘In June, exports have bounced back to pre-Covid levels. In most of the states where horticulture, agriculture, and MSME share is high, the Aatmanirbhar Abhiyan has led to many decisions responsible for boosting these sectors. Efforts are being made to make banks lend to MSME”, PM Modi asserted.
However, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh requested the Centre to work closely with states to trim the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the economy while stressing that restrictions cannot continue indefinitely.
The Punjab CM suggested to set up a group, including chief ministers, to discuss and formulate a coordinated Centre-state response.
Modi underscored that India’s position is still better than other worst-affected countries in terms of deaths and recovery rate which was made possible by timely and effective implementation of the lockdown.
As per the latest update from the Union Health Ministry, the recovery rate stands at 52.46 percent while death rate at 2.88 pc.
The Health Ministry said it is continuously ramping up testing for COVID-19 with 1,54,935 tests conducted in last 24 hrs.
The US handed over to India 100 ventilators, valued at about 1.2 million dollars, as part of President Donald Trump’s offer of assistance to New Delhi in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Embassy said in a statement.
Inside, Maharashtra continues to bear the maximum burden of infection with 1,10,744 cases and 2,786 deaths. In past 24 hrs, the state reported 4,128 cases and 178 deaths.
The state’s tally is almost one-third of total infections in India, meaning one out of three infected is in Maharashtra.
Tamil Nadu, at distant second, has recorded 46,504 cases and 1,843 deaths. The fresh cases in the state were 479 while deaths 44.
Delhi has registered 42,829 cases and 1,400 fatalities. This includes 1,647 fresh cases and 73 new deaths.
