India recorded 72,330 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, highest since October 2020, taking the total tally to 1,22,21,665 on Thursday. The active cases have now increased to 5,84,055 comprising 4.78 per cent of the total infections, while the recovery rate has further dropped to 93.89 per cent. The death toll increased to 1,62,927 with 459 daily new fatalities.

The number of people who have recovered from the disease surged to 1,14,74,683, while the case fatality rate stood at 1.33 per cent, the data stated. A total of 24,47,98,621 samples were tested for Covid-19 up to March 31. Of these, 11,25,681 samples were tested on Wednesday, said the Indian Council of Medical Research. India fought through the first wave of infection six months ago and recorded a highest single-day spike of 93,617 cases on September 16. The highest number of deaths recorded in a day were 1,169 on September 15.