India records 18,177 new COVID cases, 217 deaths in 24 hours; active cases dip to 2.5 lakh

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The number of fresh COVID-19 cases was recorded below 20,000 in India on Sunday, taking the country's caseload to 10,323,965, while the number of people who have recuperated from the disease crossed 99 lakh, according to the health ministry. A total of 19,079 people tested positive for the coronavirus infection in a day whereas 20,923 recoveries were registered during the same period. 

The death toll due to the disease climbed to 1,49,435 in the country with 217new fatalities, the ministry's data updated at 8 am showed.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 99,27,310 pushing the national recovery rate to 96.16 per cent, while the COVID-19 case fatality rate stood at 1.45 per cent.

"Recoveries outnumbering daily new cases from last 35 days have ensured a consistent decline in active cases," the ministry said.

The number of active COVID-19 cases slid below 2.5 lakh for the first time. There are 2,47,220 active coronavirus cases in the country, which accounts for 2.39 per cent of the total caseload, the data stated.

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), 17,48,99,783 samples were tested for COVID-19 in the country till January 2, including 9,58,125 on Saturday.

India's COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

A Look At COVID-19 Statewise Status