As many as 33 more persons have tested positive for coronavirus in Andhra Pradesh in the last 24 hours after 11,638 samples were tested. On Friday, 79 persons were discharged after recovery from various COVID-19 designated hospitals in the state. One death was also reported from Kurnool on Friday.
The fresh cases are far lower than the 54 new cases that were reported in the preceding 24-hour cycle.
Among the 33 new cases, four are from Chittoor, two from Nellore, and six are from Koyambedu cluster in Tamil Nadu.
Out of 345 positive cases of people who came from other states, 156 have been discharged so far out of which 22 were discharged on Friday. A total of 111 cumulative positive cases of people who came from outside the state, are presently undergoing treatment.
A total of 2,874 COVID-19 cases have been registered so far in Andhra Pradesh and about 2,037 persons have been discharged after recovery from various COVID hospitals across the state. There are 777 active cases in different hospitals across the state, after accounting for 60 deaths.
So far, 3,53,874 samples were tested according to the government, from which 3,50,544 have tested negative.
The state nodal officer reported that 11,638 samples were tested during the past 24 hours as against 9,858 tested during the preceding cycle.
As per data available till Thursday, the state's average in terms of tests conducted per million population stands at 6,409, below Delhi's 9,454, and Jammu and Kashmir's 10,753.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said the state has been doing exceptionally well in containing COVID-19 vis-à-vis the national average. He said that the state has done well, starting with just two testing labs, and now with the increased strength of 13 labs, taking the number of tests per day from 10,000 to 11,000.
Jagan said that the state is faring better than the national average in terms of positive cases, recovery rate and casualty rate.
CM said that the state has 70 COVID hospitals, including five dedicated hospitals, for treating coronavirus patients. According to the CM, the state has 38,000 isolation beds, out of which 15,000 are equipped with oxygen supply, and 5,400 ICU beds of which 1,350 have ventilator facilities. About 24,000 doctors and 22,500 paramedical staff are working.
Speaking about the fight against COVID-19, Jagan said, "We have to accept that we have to live with corona as it is not going to go away early and as it can come to anybody, we should not attach stigma to it."
(With IANS inputs)