Gujarat: Tally of COVID-19 patients rises to 432 with 54 new cases

The number of coronavirus positive patients in Gujarat rose to 432 after 54 new cases emerged on Saturday, a state health department official said.

As many as 31 new cases were reported from Ahmedabad, 18 from Vadodara, three from Anand, and one each from Surat and Bhavnagar districts, Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi said

Of the total, 379 are active cases. The condition of 376 of them is stable, while three others are critical and put on ventilator support, she said.

After a 53-year-old man from Gandhinagar was discharged from hospital on Saturday, the number of persons who have returned home after recovery has gone up to 34.

So far, 19 people have died in the state due to the infection.

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In the last 24 hours, 1,593 samples were tested, she said, out of which, 1,187 tested negative, while 124 others were positive. The test results of 282 others are still pending.

A total 8,331 samples have been tested in the state so far, she added.

Ravi said that the number of COVID-19 patients has risen sharply in the last few days.

Also Read: Coronavirus India update: State-wise total number of confirmed cases, deaths

"But there is no reason to panic. We had deliberately decided 4-5 days ago at a high-powered meeting that we will conduct intensive testing in hotspot areas where cases are likely to be found in large numbers. We will find each and every case in such areas so as to control the spread of the virus, she said.

"It has now been decided at the meeting chaired by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani that the health department will proactively collect and test samples in areas of districts where no positive cases have been found," she said.

"We will test 100 samples in every district where no coronavirus positive case has emerged so far," the officer said.

The state has conducted 132 tests per million population, she said.

District-wise, Ahmedabad has reported the highest number of cases at 228, followed by Vadodara at 77, Surat 28, Bhavnagar 23, Rajkot 8, Gandhinagar and Patan at 14 each, Bharuch 7, Anand 5, Kutch 4, Porbandar 3, Mehsana, Gir Somnath, and Chhota Udepur two each, and Dahod, Morbi, Panchmahal, Jamnagar, and Sabarkantha one each.

As many as 367 out of these 432 cases are locally transmitted, while 32 are of patients with history of inter- state travel. Thirty-three others had travelled abroad, the health department said.