India recorded a single-day rise of 1,590 new Covid cases, the highest in 146 days, while the number of active Coronavirus cases rose to 8,601, the Union health ministry informed on Saturday.
The Covid death toll increased to 5,30,824 with six more fatalities. Out of the six, three deaths were reported from Maharashtra and one each was recorded in Karnataka, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand, according to the ministry's data updated at 8 am.
The daily positivity rate was recorded at 1.33 per cent while the weekly positivity rate was pegged at 1.23 per cent.
With the new cases reported, India's total Covid-19 tally has climbed to 4,47,02,257.
According to the ministry's website, the active cases account for 0.02 per cent of the total caseload, while the national Covid-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.79 per cent.
The number of people who have recovered from Coronavirus has surged to 4,41,62,832, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent.
As per the health ministry's website, 220.65 crore doses of anti-Covid vaccines have so far been administered to beneficiaries across the country.
India has reported an uptick in daily coronavirus cases over the past week. Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kerala, and Karnataka are among the states reporting a rise in cases, according to the Health Ministry.
The Union Health Ministry said on Thursday that the XBB.1.16 subvariant of Omicron might be the dominant virus strain in the country but there has been no reported increase in the rate of hospitalisation or death so far.
Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said 344 samples have tested positive in the last three months — January, February, and March — for XBB.1.16 after whole genome sequencing. The subvariant has been found in states such as Maharashtra (105), Telangana (93), Karnataka (57), Gujarat (54), and Delhi (19).
"Omicron and its sub-lineages continue to be the predominant variant. No evidence of an increase in hospitalisation and/or mortality has been reported," Bhushan said, as per PTI.
He said XBB.1.5 and XBB.1.16 are variants of interest and under intense scientific scrutiny but they are not a "cause of immediate concern".