Covid-19: India counts 34,403 more cases

India on Friday recorded 34,403 fresh coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, 12.5 per cent higher than Thursday.

The active cases account for 1.02 per cent of the overall cases in the country (3,33,47,325) recorded since the start of the pandemic, reports NDTV. 

The government is eyeing a single-day vaccination record Friday to mark the 71st birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The highest number of vaccines administered so far in a single day has been 1.03 crore on August 27.

Over 1 billion doses have been administered so far in the WHO-linked South East Asian countries, the global body said, adding that over 76 crore doses have been given in India alone.

According to the Health Ministry, India accounts for more than 25 per cent of average daily doses given worldwide. While India's average daily dose count stands at 8.83 million, it is 25.5 million for the rest of the world, as per the data shared by the government.

The government on Thursday said only one state - Kerala - has more than one lakh active cases, and only Maharashtra has over 50,000 active cases.

Warning against laxity, the Health Ministry insisted on extra caution for the upcoming festival season. "Covid safe festivities this year will be a determining factor in our fight against the pandemic," Dr VK Paul said.

The daily positivity rate, which stood at 2.25 per cent this morning, has been less than 3 per cent for the last 18 days.

The weekly positivity rate, which currently stands at 1.97 per cent, has been less than 3 per cent for the last 84 days.

In the last 24 hours, Kerala recorded 17,681 fresh Covid cases, and Maharashtra reported 3,783 new cases. While Maharashtra has the highest overall cases, the surge in Kerala has been a cause of national worry.