New Delhi: India Gate area wears a deserted look during the weekend lockdown in view of the recent surge in coronavirus cases, at Rajpath in New Delhi, Saturday, April 17, 2021.
India on Sunday recorded 2,61,500 new cases of the novel coronavirus, along with 1,501 fatalities, the Union Health Ministry data stated. According to the data, the total cases in India have now reached 1,47,88,109, with 18,01,316 active cases presently. The total death toll in the country is now at 1,77,150, while the total recoveries are at 1,28,09,643. The Health Ministry data also stated a total of 12,26,22,590 people have so far been vaccinated across the country.
Earlier on Saturday, the country had recorded a single-day spike of over 2.34 lakh fresh infections, crossing the two lakh mark for the third straight day, as demands for increased supply of oxygen cylinders, vaccine doses and Remdesivir were raised by 11 states and UTs, including Delhi, where the pandemic situation was described as "worrisome" by the chief minister.
| Name of State / UT | Active Cases* | Cured/Discharged/Migrated* | Deaths** | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Change since yesterday | Cumulative | Change since yesterday | Cumulative | Change since yesterday | ||
| 1 | Andaman and Nicobar Islands | 121 | 5 | 5146 | 36 | 64 | 1 |
| 2 | Andhra Pradesh | 40469 | 4877 | 907598 | 2332 | 7388 | 15 |
| 3 | Arunachal Pradesh | 105 | 13 | 16806 | 6 | 56 | |
| 4 | Assam | 6141 | 725 | 216546 | 149 | 1129 | 2 |
| 5 | Bihar | 39498 | 6032 | 274207 | 1804 | 1722 | 34 |
| 6 | Chandigarh | 3414 | 9 | 29485 | 438 | 410 | 2 |
| 7 | Chhattisgarh | 130400 | 6097 | 396357 | 9828 | 5738 | 158 |
| 8 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu | 921 | 42 | 3823 | 25 | 4 | |
| 9 | Delhi | 69799 | 8794 | 746239 | 15414 | 11960 | 167 |
| 10 | Goa | 6643 | 322 | 58746 | 436 | 872 | 4 |
| 11 | Gujarat | 55398 | 5661 | 333564 | 3783 | 5267 | 97 |
| 12 | Haryana | 38558 | 4741 | 307850 | 2944 | 3386 | 32 |
| 13 | Himachal Pradesh | 8444 | 733 | 65963 | 647 | 1180 | 12 |
| 14 | Jammu and Kashmir | 10910 | 290 | 132205 | 852 | 2051 | 3 |
| 15 | Jharkhand | 25619 | 2574 | 131928 | 1234 | 1406 | 30 |
| 16 | Karnataka | 119179 | 11845 | 1009549 | 5564 | 13270 | 80 |
| 17 | Kerala | 80342 | 10154 | 1135921 | 3654 | 4904 | 27 |
| 18 | Ladakh | 1671 | 308 | 10267 | 53 | 133 | 1 |
| 19 | Lakshadweep | 280 | 101 | 770 | 5 | 1 | |
| 20 | Madhya Pradesh | 63889 | 4706 | 327452 | 6497 | 4491 | 66 |
| 21 | Maharashtra | 649563 | 9921 | 3061174 | 56783 | 59970 | 419 |
| 22 | Manipur | 190 | 25 | 29083 | 14 | 376 | |
| 23 | Meghalaya | 649 | 84 | 13997 | 11 | 152 | |
| 24 | Mizoram | 364 | 49 | 4483 | 1 | 12 | |
| 25 | Nagaland | 167 | 28 | 12275 | 4 | 94 | |
| 26 | Odisha | 17827 | 1837 | 344825 | 1303 | 1942 | 4 |
| 27 | Puducherry | 4090 | 514 | 42313 | 198 | 705 | 3 |
| 28 | Punjab | 32499 | 1754 | 254805 | 2615 | 7834 | 62 |
| 29 | Rajasthan | 59999 | 6186 | 341247 | 2823 | 3109 | 37 |
| 30 | Sikkim | 305 | 64 | 6150 | 8 | 136 | |
| 31 | Tamil Nadu | 65635 | 4042 | 902022 | 5263 | 13071 | 39 |
| 32 | Telengana | 37037 | 3523 | 312563 | 1555 | 1824 | 15 |
| 33 | Tripura | 445 | 62 | 33163 | 7 | 394 | |
| 34 | Uttarakhand | 15386 | 1840 | 104161 | 880 | 1856 | 37 |
| 35 | Uttar Pradesh | 170059 | 19383 | 641292 | 7831 | 9703 | 120 |
| 36 | West Bengal | 45300 | 4253 | 595668 | 3426 | 10540 | 34 |
| Total# | 1801316 | 121576 | 12809643 | 138423 | 177150 | 1501 | |
As India's COVID-19 tally inched towards 1.50 crore-mark and the death toll climbed above 1.75 lakh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union health Harsh Vardhan held meetings to review measures taken by states for prevention, containment and management of the recent surge.
The prime minister called for utilising the entire national capacity across private and public sectors to produce vaccines, amid concerns in various states about lack of these essentials.
Chairing a meeting to review the status of preparedness to handle the COVID-19 situation, Modi said local administrations needed to be proactive and sensitive to people's concerns.
These remarks assume significance in the backdrop of reports of COVID-19 patients and their families accusing the authorities in several states of apathy in providing treatment.
Modi said there is no substitute for 'testing, tracking and treatment', and that early testing and proper tracking remain key to reducing mortality.
"Together India had defeated COVID-19 last year and India can do it again, with the same principles but faster speed and coordination," he said.
