Bengal on Friday completed 68 successive days of fall in the total of active Covid-19 cases with 703 new infections, 719 recoveries and eight deaths.

The total of active cases fell by 24 to reach 9,143.

The state currently has 2.58 per cent of the national total of active cases and occupies the sixth spot on the list of states with most such cases.

Calcutta logged 112 new infections, while North 24-Parganas reported 88. Six of the 23 Bengal districts logged single-digit figures of new infections on Friday.

The state’s recovery rate remained 98.22 per cent — the highest ever this pandemic —still fairly ahead of the national rate of 97.53.

The daily positive confirmation rate, which was nearly 33 per cent at the peak of the second wave, was 1.62 per cent on Friday. Sixteen Bengal districts reported zero deaths on Friday. Calcutta recorded one.

The state’s mortality rate is 1.19, while that of the nation is 1.34 per cent.

Bengal currently has over 15.46 lakh Covid-19 cases since the first was reported in March last year. The total includes more than 15.18 lakh recoveries and 18,410 deaths.