Odisha coronavirus update: Tally jumps to 254,662 with 2,423 fresh cases

Odisha's Covid-19 tally surged to 2,54,662 as 2,423 more people tested positive for the virus, while 18 fresh fatalities pushed the death toll to 1,040

Odisha's COVID-19 tally surged to 2,54,662 on Monday as 2,423 more people tested positive for the virus, while 18 fresh fatalities pushed the death toll to 1,040, a health official said.

The state also registered the recovery of 2,577 patients taking the total number of cured people to 2.30,192, which is 90.39 per cent of the caseload.

Khurda district, under which state capital Bhubaneswar falls, recorded the highest new cases - 359. It is followed by Angul (229) and Sundergarh (195) districts.

"Regret to inform the demise of eighteen #COVID19 positive patients while under treatment in hospitals," the Health and Family Welfare Department said on Twitter.

Of the 18 deaths, Cuttack registered four, while Balasore and Khurda reported three each. The remaining fatalities were recorded in six other districts, the official said.

Ganjam district has accounted for a total of 222 deaths, followed by Khurda (176) and Cuttack (88).

As many as 53 other COVID-19 patients have also lost their lives, but the cause of their deaths was due to other reasons, he said.

Odisha now has 23,377 active cases, which is 9.17 per cent of the state's caseload.

The state has thus far tested over 37.96 lakh samples, including 41,096 on Sunday, for COVID-19, the official said.

Meanwhile, in a bid to boost the morale of doctors engaged in COVID hospitals, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik spoke to a number of surgeons and appreciated their work.

Patnaik said that the dedication of frontline workers has resulted in over 90 per cent of patients getting cured of the highly infectious disease.