As per data released by the Health Ministry on Tuesday, five States — Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu — continue to report a surge in COVID-19 cases and account for nearly 80% (79.73%) of the 24,492 new cases registered in the past 24 hours.

Maharashtra has reported the highest daily new cases at 15,051, followed by Punjab with 1,818, while Kerala reported 1,054.

“Eight States — Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Gujarat, Karnataka and Haryana — are displaying an upward trajectory in daily new cases,” said the Ministry release.

India has also reported 20,191 recoveries and 131 deaths in the last 24 hours, with the country’s active case load at 2,23,432 currently.

India has reported 131 deaths, with seven States accounting for 82.44% of the new deaths. Maharashtra saw the maximum casualties (48), followed by Punjab with 27 daily deaths and Kerala with 11 deaths in the last 24 hours.

Chandigarh, Odisha, Jharkhand, Lakshadweep, Sikkim, Ladakh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Nagaland, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh are among 16 States/Union Territories that have not reported any COVID-19 deaths in the last 24 hours.