Bhubaneswar, Feb 24: Odisha’s COVID-19 caseload mounted to 3,36,835 on Wednesday as 68 more people tested positive for the infection, a health department official said. Of the new cases, 40 were reported from quarantine centres and 28 detected during contact tracing.

Khurda district, of which the state capital Bhubaneswar is a part, reported the highest number of fresh cases at nine, followed by Sambalpur at seven. During the day, 90 patients were cured of the disease, taking the total number of recoveries to 3,34,333, which is 99.25 per cent of the caseload.

Dhenkanal and Kandhamal districts have turned “coronavirus free” as no active cases exist there, the official said. The COVID-19 death toll remained at 1,914 as no fresh fatality due to the infection has been reported since February 19.

Fifty-three other COVID-19 patients have succumbed to comorbidities in the state, he said. The state currently has 535 active COVID-19 cases, which is 0.15 per cent of the caseload.

The state has so far tested over 82.30 lakh samples for COVID-19, including 17,392 on Tuesday, and the positivity rate stands at 4.1 per cent. The state government has started preparation to commence vaccination for elderly people from March, the official said.

The Centre on Wednesday announced that people over 60 years and those above 45 with comorbidities can get the COVID-19 vaccine from March 1. Odisha Health and Family Welfare department additional chief secretary PK Mohapatra, in a letter to the district collectors and civic bodies, said all the facilities should be prepared for the COVID-19 vaccination drive.

The authorities are told to complete the preparation work by February 28. The health department issued an advisory for the purpose and said the vaccination sessions should be planned for five days a week.

Meanwhile, Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation commissioner P C Chaudhury said they have plans to open a COVID testing centre which will be set up at the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) here.

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