23,558 Karnataka records another big jump in new Covid cases

BENGALURU, 22 Apr 2021 [Fik/News Sources]: The pandemic’s second wave is picking up furiously in Karnataka with the state breaking its own record of highest daily additions in Covid-19 cases, almost on consecutive days. On Wednesday, the state recorded a whopping 23,558 fresh Covid-19 cases after witnessing 21,794 cases on Tuesday.The third highest day’s addition was recorded on April 18, at 19,067 cases. Consequently, the state’s positivity rate has been spiralling, and was at 5.08 per cent on Wednesday.

The positivity rate going up is not a good sign, because this is happening despite the increased number of daily tests. On September 7 last year, when the number of tests had not yet crossed one lakh per day, the state saw its positivity rate peak at 12.54 per cent. However, despite the number of daily tests being considerably increased to over 1.5 lakh at present, the positivity rate has crossed 5 per cent and going north.

The figure had fallen to 4.63 per cent on April 4, after which it has been steadily increasing - indicating that the infection spread is only gaining speed. Not surprisingly, the growth in the Covid-19 tally on Wednesday was 1.96 per cent, considering the tally was 11,98,644 on Tuesday. This is the biggest growth in percentage recorded in the second wave.

An indicator to the speed of the infection spread is the day’s positivity rate going up to as high as 15.47 per cent against 1,52,281 tests reported on Wednesday. But the case fatality rate - the percentage of day’s deaths to the cases added on the day - was just 0.49 per cent. 

Covid-19 fatalities reported on Wednesday were 116, down from 149 on Tuesday, and the state’s mortality rate fell a notch to 1.12 per cent from 1.13 per cent on Tuesday.With this record jump in the number of fresh cases, the state’s Covid-19 tally right from the March 8 last year, when the first case was reported, has crossed the 12-lakh mark, at 12,22,202 cases, up from 11,98,644 the previous day. 

Of these, a total of 10,32,233 were discharged and 13,762 died due to the dreaded disease. The figures were 10,25,821 and 13,646, respectively, on Tuesday.With the infection spreading, the recovery rate, which had impressively risen till 98.06 per cent on January 30, has now plummeted to 84.45 per cent. 

Under treatment

It was 85.58 per cent on Tuesday. A total of 6,412 patients got discharged on Wednesday, as against 4,571 the previous day. The number of cases currently under treatment has risen to an all-time state high of 1,76,188, up from 1,59,158 on Tuesday, and the state is the third in the country with the highest number of active cases.