Bengal on Wednesday reported 700 new Covid-19 infections, 746 recoveries and six deaths.

Active cases fell by 52 to touch 10,163 now, with the total number of active coronavirus cases dropping for 52 continuous days in the state.

Bengal now has 2.64 per cent of the national total of active cases, and is eighth among states with most such cases.

Calcutta logged 78 new infections and zero deaths.

With North 24-Parganas logging 89 new cases, Wednesday was the sixth straight day again of not one Bengal district reporting a three-digit figure of new infections in a day. Sixteen Bengal districts reported two-digit figures and Kalimpong, South Dinajpur, Malda, Murshidabad, Birbhum, Purulia and Jhargram single-digit figures. Nineteen districts reported zero deaths. Kalimpong, West Midnapore and North 24-Parganas reported one each.

The state’s recovery rate is 98.15 per cent, its highest ever this pandemic, ahead of the national rate of 97.42. The state’s mortality rate is 1.18 now, while that of the nation is 1.33 per cent. Bengal’s daily Covid-19 positive confirmation rate, which was nearly 33 per cent at the peak of the second wave, was 1.49 per cent on Wednesday.

Bengal now has over 15.35 lakh Covid-19 cases, since the first was reported in March last year. The total includes more than 15.07 lakh recoveries and 18,258 deaths.