Odisha reports record 12,852 new coronavirus cases, 28 more deaths

Odisha's COVID-19 tally

mounted to 6,92,382 on Sunday as the state reported its highest single-day spike of 12,852 new cases, despite undergoing lockdown for more than two weeks, a health department official said.

The state also registered 28 fresh COVID fatalities, the biggest one-day count, which took the toll to 2,484, he said.

Of the new cases, 7,195 were reported from quarantine centres and the remaining 5,657 detected during contact tracing.

Khurda district, which comprises the state capital Bhubaneswar, recorded the highest number of fresh cases at 1,909, followed by Cuttack (1,073), Angul (874), Sundergarh (848), Kalahandi (668), Mayurbhanj (586) and Balasore (508).

The remaining cases were registered in several other districts.

Taking to Twitter, the Health and Family Welfare department said, "Regret to inform the demise of twenty-eight COVID positive patients while under treatment in hospitals."

Five new fatalities were recorded in Khurda, followed by four each in Kalahandi and Sundargarh, three each in Angul and Kendrapara, two each in Puri, Nabarangpur and Rayagada, the official said.

One patient each in Gajapati, Ganjam and Nuapada succumbed to the disease, he said.

Fifty-three other coronavirus-positive patients died in the state due to comorbidities.

Odisha now has 1,11,862 active cases, while 5,77,983 patients have recovered from the disease.

The state has so far conducted over 1.13 crore sample tests for COVID-19, including 67,156 on Saturday, and the positivity ratio stands at 6.12 per cent.

Meanwhile, the state government has decided to create a designated "Paediatric COVID Wing" in health centres and hospitals where coronavirus patients are being treated.

Health Department's Additional Chief Secretary PK Mohapatra wrote to authorities of several medical facilities and asked them to reserve 15 per cent of beds initially in isolation wards, HDUs and ICUs as part of the initiative to meet future challenges.

He also issued a direction to the authorities of hospitals to earmark a COVID newborn unit with strict isolation and infection prevention measures.

Mohapatra also said Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Post Graduate Institute of Paediatrics (SVPGIP), Cuttack will act as the nodal centre for monitoring and providing technical input to doctors involved in the treatment of children in other parts of the state.

All private hospitals and facilities run by corporate houses, NGOs, missionaries and other organisations are also required to create such units, he said in the letter.