COVID: 5 states contribute 61% of total active cases

The number of people recovered from COVID-19 in India has surged to 33,98,844, further improving the recovery rate to 77.77 per cent, while the case fatality rate has dropped to 1.69 per cent, the Union health ministry said on Wednesday.

It also said five states have contributed 61 per cent of the total active cases.

A record 74,894 patients recovered from COVID-19 in a span of 24 hours, according to the ministry's data updated at 8 am.

The total number of recoveries on a weekly basis has increased from 1,53,118 during the third week of July to 4,84,068 in the first week of September, the ministry said.

A total of 89,706 new cases have been reported in a span of 24 hours, of which Maharashtra has contributed more than 20,000 and Andhra Pradesh more than 10,000 cases.

Sixty per cent of the new cases are reported from only five states, it said.

There are 8,97,394 active cases of COVID-19 in the country which comprises 20.53 per cent of the total caseload, it said.

Maharashtra is leading this tally with more than 2,40,000 active cases whereas Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh follow with more than 96,000 each.

"Five states -- Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu -- contribute 61 per cent of the total active cases of coronavirus infection," the ministry said.

A total of 1,115 deaths have been registered in a day. Maharashtra has reported 380 deaths followed by Karnataka with 146 deaths, whereas Tamil Nadu has logged 87 deaths, it said.

With 89,706 infections being reported in a day, India's COVID-19 tally of cases mounted to 43,70,128, while the death toll rose to 73,890 with 1,115 people succumbing to the disease in a span of 24 hours in the country, the data updated at 8 am showed.