Jharkhand on Saturday reported a spike in active cases of Covid-19 as fresh instances of SARS-CoV-2 infection outnumbered recoveries for the second day in a row, taking the active caseload to above 80, figures compiled by the health department highlighted.

As per a bulletin released by the National Health Mission (NHM), at least 15 fresh Covid cases against only five recoveries took the active caseload to 82 in Jharkhand on Saturday, while Ranchi also witnessed a spike in the active caseload as it reported at least nine fresh cases against three Covid recoveries.

Jamtara reported three fresh Covid cases, while Khunti, Hazaribagh and East Singhbhum reported one case each, the NHM bulletin stated. As per NHM data, at least 11 of 24 districts did not have active cases of Covid-19, while Ranchi accounted for half of the active cases in Jharkhand.

The state on Saturday tested swab samples of at least 49,041 residents and 0.03 per cent of them were found infected by the deadly virus. As per government data, over 3.48 lakh residents have tested positive for Covid-19 in Jharkhand so far and 98.50 per cent of them have recovered, while 1.47 per cent of patients could not survive.

Jharkhand on Saturday vaccinated close to 1.30 lakh residents against Covid-19.

As many as 78,291 residents were administered the first dose of vaccine against Covid-19 on Saturday, while at least 50,927 beneficiaries received the booster dose of vaccine.

Ranchi vaccinated close to 20,000 residents on Saturday, the highest among the 24 districts in Jharkhand. On the other hand, East Singhbhum administered vaccines to at least 18,000 beneficiaries and about 10,000 beneficiaries were vaccinated in Dhanbad.

According to the health department, the state has so far vaccinated 99 per cent of healthcare workers and frontline workers, while 50 per cent of residents in the age bracket of 18 years to 44 years have received at least one dose of the vaccine. At least 57 per cent of eligible beneficiaries in the age bracket of 45 years to 59 years have been at least partially-vaccinated, while 58 per cent of senior citizens in the state have received at least one jab.