Coronavirus Cases Today: Fresh Infection Count Remains Over 10 Thousand, Active Caseload At 57,542

Covid-19 India Update: In the last 24 hours, there were 6,248 recoveries. The number of deaths recorded so far is 5,31,114. 

Covid-19 India Update: As of April 16, 2023 at 8:00 am IST, the number of active cases in India is 57,542. As many as 4,42,29,459 people infected with Covid-19 have been discharged since the beginning of the pandemic.

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India logged 10,093 fresh cases of Covid-19 in the last 24 hours. The fresh infection count remains over 10,000. As of April 16, 2023 at 8:00 am IST, the number of active cases in India is 57,542. As many as 4,42,29,459 people infected with Covid-19 have been discharged since the beginning of the pandemic. In the last 24 hours, there were 6,248 recoveries. The number of Covid-19 deaths recorded so far is 5,31,114. 

The current recovery rate is 98.68 per cent, and the death rate is 1.19 per cent, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The daily positivity rate is 5.61 per cent, and the weekly positivity rate is 4.78 per cent. 

The total number of tests conducted so far is over 92.4 crores. The number of tests done during the previous day is 1,79,853. As many as 2,20,66,26,324 Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered so far.

Why Covid-19 cases are increasing

Covid-19 cases in India have been on the rise since late February, despite over 90 per cent of the country's population being vaccinated against Covid-19. This is because XBB.1.16 Omicron subvariant is more contagious than other SARS-CoV-2 strains, and has developed the ability to breach the immunity conferred by Covid-19 vaccines, according to experts. 

Other reasons include waning immunity to SARS-CoV-2 due to a very small proportion of Indians getting the booster dose of Covid-19. 

Moreover, people are no longer careful, and go to public places without wearing masks. Also, public health precautions have not been sufficiently strict. 

Together, these factors account for the surge in Covid-19 cases despite the majority of India's population being vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2. 

Why current Covid-19 hospitalisation and death rates in India are less 

However, the current hospitalisation and death rates due to Covid-19 are less compared to those during the Delta wave, or the second wave of Covid-19. 

India saw a huge number of Covid-19 deaths during the Delta wave, which gripped the country from April to June 2021. During the Delta wave, Covid-19 claimed about 2,40,000 lives in India, according to the United Nations. 

The current Covid-19 death rate in India is 1.19 per cent, which is quite less compared to that during the Delta wave.

According to experts, the current Covid-19 deaths and hospitalisations are less compared to those during the Delta wave because the majority of the people infected with SARS-CoV-2 are experiencing mild symptoms and are recovering by isolating themselves at home. Most importantly, a greater number of people are vaccinated against Covid-19 than that during the Delta wave. While XBB.1.16 has a faster transmission rate than the Delta variant, the former is not as dangerous as the latter, and does not cause severe disease.

Since infection caused by XBB.1.16 is not as severe as that caused by the Delta variant, hospitalisation rates are less.