Ahmedabad: The total number of coronavirus positive cases in Gujarat rose to 1,272 on Saturday after 176 more people were found to be infected, a state Health Department official said.
Most of the cases were detected in the hotspot areas where surveillance has been stepped up.
Gujarat also reported seven more deaths due to COVID-19 disease, taking their tally to 48.
Meanwhile, the number of recoveries stood at 88 with two patients being discharged from Rajkot and Gandhinagar hospitals, the official added.
Five of the seven deceased were from Ahmedabad, while one death each was reported from Vadodara and Surat, said Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi.
Among the 176 new cases, the additions from Ahmedabad were 143, taking the total number of the affected people in the city to 765.
“A majority of these cases were reported from hotspot areas where intense surveillance is being done,” said Ravi.
Vadodara and Surat reported 13 new cases each, while Rajkot and Bhavnagar reported two cases each, followed by Anand, Bharuch and Panchmahal reporting one case each.
The age of the seven deceased ranged from 36 years to 72 years.
Three out of the total five decesed in Ahmedabad–all women–had comorbidities.
While a 68-year-old woman was suffering from hypertension and TB, anohter woman (72) had a kidney disease.
While a 65-year-old woman was suffering from hypertension and kidney failure, another 50-year-old had some mental illness.
A 70-year-old woman from Aravalli who died in Ahmedabad hospital was suffering from a heart disease.
A 36-year-old woman who died in Surat had hypertension.
She reportedly didn’t have any underlying conditions, Ravi said, adding that another deceased, a 60-year-old man, succumbed to the COVID-19 disease in Vadodara.
With fresh deaths, the death toll in Ahmemdabad stands at 25, Vadodara (7) and Surat (6).
Ravi said seven out of the total 1136 active cases are on ventilator support.
A total 2802 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, out of which 251 tested negative, she said.
“So far, the state has tested 24,614 samples, out of which 1,272 have tested positive,” Ravi added.
Ravi also informed that Gujarat has received about 24,000 rapid testing kits from Delhi.
“Technical experts are studying details regarding the rapid testing kits. They will calibratethem and try them on discharged COVID-19 patients. We will also conduct massive training from Saturday afternoon, as per the protocol specified by the Central government. We will begin their utilisation in different districts from either today or tomorrow,” she added.