India reports largest single-day jump in COVID-19 cases

By Shuriah Niazi

NEW DELHI(AA) - The death toll due to the novel coronavirus in India rose to 8,102 and the number of cases reached 286,579 after the highest single-day spike of 357 fatalities and 9,996 cases reported in the past 24 hours, according the Ministry of Health on Thursday.

According to the data, the number of active cases stands at 137,448, while 141,028 people have recovered so far.

Maharashtra continues to remain the worst-affected state with 94,041 cases, followed by Tamil Nadu with 36,841 and Delhi with 32,810.

So far, healthcare professionals have performed 5,213,140 tests as of June 11, 9.00 a.m. (1530GMT), said the Indian Council of Medical Research, with 151,808 tests in the last 24 hours.

India is the fifth worst-affected country by the coronavirus pandemic at present after the US, Brazil, Russia and the UK. In terms of deaths, India ranks 12th, while it is ninth in number of recoveries, according to data compiled by the US-based Johns Hopkins University.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court intervened amid reports of 35 children in a government-run home in the southern city of Chennai, tested positive for COVID-19.

The apex court sought a status report from the Tamil Nadu state government regarding the spread of the novel coronavirus in shelter homes and steps taken to safeguard children.

Nearly 7.4 million cases of the coronavirus have been reported worldwide, including over 2.52 million recoveries and more than 417,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.