Bengal on Saturday reported 670 new Covid-19 infections, 764 recoveries and 14 deaths, resulting in a fall by 108 in its active cases to 8,029.
In the past 42 days, since Bengal snapped out of a 97-day streak of fall in active cases, there has been a net rise of 355 in the number of people being treated for Covid-19, from 7,674.
A minister said the new infections reported on Saturday indicated people who were infected between October 28 and November 1 (three days before Kali Puja).
Calcutta reported 181 new infections and North 24-Parganas 126, the only two of the state’s 23 districts with a three-digit figure of new cases found in a day. Seven districts reported a single-digit figure.
Calcutta, North and South 24-Parganas, Howrah, Hooghly and Nadia accounted for 475 or 70.89 per cent of the new infections detected on Saturday.
Calcutta logged four deaths and North 24-Parganas reported two. Sixteen districts reported zero deaths.
The state’s recovery rate is 98.29 per cent now, while that of the nation is 98.23 per cent. Bengal’s daily positive confirmation rate, nearly 33 per cent at the peak of the second wave, was 2.21 per cent on Saturday. The state’s mortality rate is 1.2 per cent, while that of the nation is 1.34 per cent.
Bengal now has nearly 15.98 lakh Covid-19 cases, since the first was logged in March last year. The total includes over 15.7 lakh recoveries and 19,215 deaths