Bengal on New Year’s Day reported 4,512 new infections — above 4,000 in a 24-hour period for the first time since June 12, 203 days ago —including 2,398 or over 53 per cent of the state’s total, from Calcutta alone.

This is the highest daily count of new infections for Calcutta since May 26 during the second wave.

Even on Christmas, the state’s total of infections was 552 and that of Calcutta was 197.

From the state’s total of 752 reported on Tuesday, Bengal’s daily new infection count rose to 1,089 on Wednesday, 2,128 on Thursday, 3,451 on Friday and 4,512 on Saturday.

New Covid cases reported on Saturday indicates

those infected between December 23 and 27.

Bengal, according to the Union health ministry data released on Saturday morning, has 17 omicron cases (including three recoveries). The state is 11th on the list of states with the most such cases. The top three spots are occupied by Maharashtra, with 454, Delhi, with 351, and Tamil Nadu, with 118.

There were also 1,913 Covid recoveries and nine deaths reported on Saturday, resulting in a rise by 2,590 in the total of active cases to 13,310. The number of active cases or Covid patients under treatment is above 13,000 again in Bengal after July 18, 167 days ago. As a result, the recovery rate fell overnight to 97.95 (from 98.14 on Friday), considerably lower now than the national rate of 98.32.

The surge, apparent since Wednesday, has been mostly restricted to the city and its surrounding areas for now. It has been attributed by sources in the state government to the general disregard for Covid-19 safety protocols among revellers since the run-up to Christmas.

Calcutta and its immediate neighbourhood of North and South 24-Parganas, Howrah, Hooghly and Nadia accounted for 3,868 or 85.73 per cent of the new infections reported in 24 hours, till 9am on Saturday.

The state’s positive confirmation rate, which was 1.71 per cent even on Christmas, rose to 12.02 per cent on New Year’s Day. A positive confirmation rate of up to 5 per cent is considered tolerable in a pandemic situation. At the peak of the second wave in 2021, it had climbed to 33 per cent.

In perhaps the only silver lining, 18 of the state’s 23 districts reported zero deaths. Calcutta reported two deaths.

The state’s mortality rate is 1.2, while that of the nation is 1.33 per cent.

Bengal now has nearly 16.43 lakh Covid-19 cases, since the first was logged in March last year. The total includes close to 16.1 lakh recoveries and 19,773 deaths.