Death toll in U.P. increases to 21

Number of cases climbs to 1,337

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT ,LUCKNOW

Helping hands: Volunteers serving food to those in need in U.P. on Tuesday. PTI

The COVID-19 death toll in U.P. hit 21 on Tuesday with three cases, two in Moradabad and one in Aligarh, as per the UP Directorate of Health Services.

The number of positive cases also climbed to 1,337 with 153 new ones in the last 24 hours. The highest rise was recorded in Agra (65) and Rae Bareli (33), while Kanpur and Moradabad each reported 15 since Monday.

Previously negative

The fresh cases included 33 from Rae Bareli where persons kept under quarantine who had tested negative earlier now tested positive.

Speaking about this at a press briefing here, Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, Awanish Awasthi said, “[We] got the benefit of keeping people under quarantine as precaution.”

Mr. Awasthi, however, did not provide details.

With 306 positive cases and six deaths, Agra continues to be the worst-affected district in the State so far while Lucknow is in the second place with 169 cases.

The cases have been reported in 53 of the 75 districts.

Ten have been declared “corona-free”.

Samples tested

The State has so far sent 37,933 samples for testing.

With 1,154 active cases and after experimenting with pool testing at the King George’s Medical University here, the government has now also started it at the LLRM Medical College in Meerut and plans to have it in the SGPGI Lucknow too.