Bengal on Tuesday logged a rise in total number of active Covid-19 cases by 233 as 19,428 infections, 19,050 recoveries and 145 deaths were recorded.
The state reported the rise in the number of active patients — which was 1,31,793 on Tuesday— after two days of fall in the figure.
Sources in the government said the two-day break in the otherwise relentless spell of rise, which had begun on March 12, was an aberration, which they attributed to relatively less number of tests over the weekend.
A minister said the expected improvement in the situation, following an estimated mid-May peak in the second wave, was yet to take off.
“The positive confirmation was steadily on the rise — it grew from 9.68 on Friday to 10.13 per cent on Tuesday — even when the number of new infections being detected was relatively low. So, we knew that the apparent improvement over the past couple of days was on account of the fewer tests,” said the minister.
On Friday, Bengal had 70,051 tests, which had dropped to 60,016 on Monday. On Tuesday, there were 67,626 tests.
“The positive confirmation rate has skyrocketed in a month (from 6.73 on April 18)…. Till that tide turns, this second wave mess will not begin to clear,” he added.
Deemed a key indicator, the positive confirmation rate is the percentage of positive cases out of samples tested. An increasing positive confirmation rate is indicative of rising levels of Covid-19 spread.
Bengal is currently eighth on the list of states with the highest positive confirmation rate. The state has 4.09 per cent of the national total of active cases and is eighth on the list of states with most active cases.
In what is being noted as a significantly positive indicator, the recovery rate rose for the 17th consecutive day, to 87.6 per cent. The national rate now is 86.2.
Of the 145 deaths, 38 were reported from Calcutta and 36 from North 24-Parganas, the two worst-affected districts. While Calcutta logged 3,785 new infections, North 24-Parganas reported 4,115.
The state’s total Covid-19 death count now is 13,576, while the mortality rate is 1.15 per cent. The national rate is now 1.11.