Odisha reports highest single-day spike with 173 COVID-19 cases; tally reaches 2,781

Odisha on Saturday reported its highest single-day spike in COVID-19 cases after 173 more people tested positive for the disease, taking the tally in the state to 2,781, a health department official said. Of the 173 cases, 150 were in quarantine centres, where people returning from different states are staying. Twenty-three others were detected with the infection during contact-tracing exercises, he said.

A total of 156 people had tested positive for COVID- 19 on June 2, which was the highest number of cases reported in a day till Friday. As many as 112 patients also recovered from the disease on Saturday, the official said. The fresh cases were reported from 14 districts. The maximum of 64 was reported in Ganjam, followed by 19 in Jajpur, 13 each in Cuttack and Mayurbhanj, 11 each in Balasore and Bolangir and 10 in Gajapati.

Nine cases were reported in Khurda, eight in Nuapada, seven in Nayagarh, four in Bhadrak, two in Kalahandi and one each in Jharsuguda and Puri. The state's total positive cases now stand at 2,781 and 1,055 of them are active. Eight people have died due to the disease so far while two others succumbed at COVID-19 hospitals due to comorbidities, the official said.

The state health department conducted 3,611 sample tests on Friday, he said. According to him, the total number of samples tested so far is 1,72,621.

The number of active cases in the state now stands at 1,167, while 1,604 people have recovered from the disease. Eight people have succumbed to the disease, while two others who tested positive for COVID-19, died of other reasons, the official said.

The districts that have reported more than 100 cases are Ganjam (597), Jajpur (312), Khurda (226), Balasore (190), Cuttack (167), Kendrapara (163), Bhadrak (140), Bolangir (116). As migrant workers continue to return to the state since May 3, the government has set up 16,797 temporary medical centres in 6,798-gram panchayats.

These facilities with 7,58,555 beds act as institutional quarantine centres. Meanwhile, the state government cautioned those returning to Odisha from abroad saying that some of them are not cooperating with the health department after their arrival.

"All foreign returnees should cooperate and take calls on their registered numbers from the 104/ State Call Centre. Keeping phones in switched off mode or non-acknowledgement of calls will be viewed as jumping of home quarantine and liable to be prosecuted as per penal provision," the health department said in a statement..

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