Odisha reports 5 new COVID-19 cases, total rises to 79

Five more people tested positive for coronavirus in Odisha on Tuesday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 79, a health department official said.

All the fresh cases have been reported from Balasore district neighbouring West Bengal, he said, adding that these include three males.

The five new cases were close relatives of a COVID-19 patient in a containment zone in Balasore town, the official said.

The number of active cases in the state now stands at 49 as four people have been cured. Those who have recovered are from Dhenkanal, Kalahandi, Sundergarh and Kendrapara districts, officials said.

Now, there are no cases in Kalahandi and Sundergarh, they said.

Of the total 30 districts in the state, 10 have reported COVID-19 patients, while . 20 remain free from the deadly virus.

A 72-year-old man from Bhubaneswar had died of the coronavirus infection on April 6.

Of the total 79 cases reported in the state, 46 are from Khurda district comprising Bhubaneswar, eight each from Balasore and Bhadrak, seven from Jajpur, three from Sundergarh, two each from Kendrapara and Kalahandi and one each from Cuttack, Dhenkanal and Puri districts.

A total of 11,748 Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT PCR) and 4,861 rapid antibody tests have been conducted in the state so far, the official added.