The condition of former chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, wife Meera and daughter Suchetana, who had all tested positive for Covid-19, remained clinically stable through Wednesday.

The communist veteran insisted on staying in home-isolation, but physicians monitoring his health parameters continued to urge hospitalisation.

While Bhattacharjee, 77, — a patient of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for long — and his daughter stayed separately in home isolation, 71-year-old Meera was admitted to a private hospital.

“Buddhababu is stable, yes. But given his many health complications over the years, the importance of his hospitalisation cannot be overemphasised. But, as is common with him, he has been firmly refusing to get admitted, choosing instead to rely on the elaborate set-up in place at home,” said a physician.

The Bhattacharjees, who had tested positive on Tuesday, were among the 19,006 new Covid patients reported in 24 hours till 9am on Wednesday.

In a bit of a breather, Bengal on Wednesday logged a drop — by 302 to 1,31,491 – in total active Covid cases as 19,151 recoveries were reported. The state also reported a total of 157 deaths from Covid, the highest in a 24-hour period.

Of the 157 deaths, 31 were from the city and 48 from North 24-Parganas.

Although a drop in the total active cases had been reported on Sunday and Monday as well, a minister pointed out that Wednesday’s fall came without relatively fewer tests.

He said the state was yet to get to the expected improvement in the situation, following an estimated mid-May peak in the second wave, but was not far from it.

Bengal has 4.2 per cent of the national total of active cases and is seventh 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 18th consecutive day to 87.81 per cent. The national rate now is 86.7.

While Calcutta logged 3,618 new infections, North 24-Parganas reported 4,177.

The state’s total Covid-19 death count now is 13,733, with the mortality rate at 1.15 per cent. The national rate is now 1.11.