This was the lowest weekly case count in nearly eight months since February 22-28 this year.
The dip came on the back of a big decline in cases in major Covid-hit states. Kerala logged 59,521 cases in the week (October 11-17), down 20.2% from the previous week’s tally. The state still accounted for 54% of all new cases in the country.
Maharashtra saw an even steeper drop of 25%, recording 13,825 new cases during the week, down from 18,523 in the preceding week. This was the sharpest decline in weekly cases in the state in over four months since May 31-June 6.
Andhra reported a dip of 28.3% in weekly cases while Karnataka logged a 22.5% decline. In Tamil Nadu, where cases have been falling more gradually, there was 9.7% drop in weekly infections.
Cases fell in Mizoram for the second week running, with the state reporting a dip of 16.4%. However, with 6,770 fresh infections, Mizoram continued to report the fourth highest case count in the country after Kerala, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu (8,827). Cases declined in Bengal and Odisha as well, although testing was affected in Bengal due to Durga Puja celebrations.
Meanwhile, 1,515 deaths were reported in the country during the week, down 14.6% from the previous week’s 1,776.