Weekly Covid cases 6.5% up nationally, 37% in Delhi | India News

Delhi registered a 37% rise in Covid cases in the week ending Sunday, breaking a three-week spell of declining infections, in a pattern of alternating rise and fall that is being seen in several other states during the current surge of the virus.

Meanwhile, Covid cases rose nationally for the ninth straight week, with nearly 1.37 lakh infections detected in the country in the last seven days (July 18-24), up 6.5% from the previous week. This is the highest weekly Covid cases tally since mid-February this year.

Covid deaths in India, although continuing to be relatively low, crossed 300 for the first time since the first week of March. There were at least 308 fresh deaths during the week, a 22% increase over the previous week’s toll of 253. Delhi reported 4,477 fresh cases, up from 3,280, signaling another rise in cases in the capital. Neighboring UP and Haryana too recorded an increase for the second week running. Cases have been rising and falling alternately in the three states over the past 15 weeks or so. A similar trend is being seen in at least two other states, Rajasthan and Karnataka.

Active Covid cases of the virus in the country were close to the 1.5-lakh mark, the highest since February 23.
While Kerala continued to report the highest number of new cases, logging over 16,000 in the current week, cases continued to decline in the state. Kerala reported a 19% drop in weekly cases. Cases were also declining in Bengal (down 24%), Tamil Nadu (10%), and Bihar (17%). In most other states, infections inched up during the week. Maharashtra reported nearly the same number of new cases as in the previous week, 14,870 against 15,367. Infections continued to rage in the east and northeast in states such as Assam, Odisha, Tripura, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Sikkim.