Gujarat COVID-19 cases up by 398 to 8195; death toll 493

Gujarat on Sunday reported 398 new COVID-19 cases and 21 deaths, including 18 from Ahmedabad alone, taking the total case count to 8,195 and the number of fatalities to 493, a state Health department official said.

The state has also reported a sharp jump in the recovery of COVID-19 patients, with 454 patients getting discharged from hospitals on Sunday, based on the revised discharge policy.

The total number of the recovered patients now stands at 2,545, the official said, adding that Gujarat has a higher discharge rate compared to Punjab, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Odisha, Delhi and Chandigarh.

Of the 21 deaths, 18 were from Ahmedabad, and one each from Anand, Bhavnagar and Surat, said Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi.

"Thirteen of 21 deceased were suffering from comorbid conditions," she said.

While Ahmedabad reported 278 new cases, Surat reported 41 cases, Vadodara 25 and Gandhinagar 10 of the total 17 districts that have reported fresh cases on Sunday, the official added.

Total COVID-19 cases in Ahmedabad district went up to 5,818.

Explaining the rise in the number of the recovered patients, Ravi said that asymptomatic cases or those having mild symptoms can be discharged from hospitals after ten days without conducting any tests, as per the revised discharged policy.

"As many as 454 patients recovered and discharged from state hospitals on Sunday. The patient discharge rate in Gujarat, which was 15.58 per cent on May 1, has more than doubled to 32.64 per cent in just nine days," said Ravi.

Ravi said Gujarat now has 5,157 active cases, 31 of whom are on ventilator and in serious condition,whereas others are stable.

Gujarat COVID-19 figures are as follows: Positive cases 8,195, new cases 398, deaths 493, number of discharged people 2,545, active cases 5,157 and people tested so far 1,13,493.