This was the fourth consecutive day that COVID-19 cases in the country have increased by more than 26,000.
India saw yet another record single-day jump of COVID-19 cases, with 28,701 fresh infections pushing its tally to 8,78,254 on Monday, even as the recovery rate further improved to 63.02 per cent, according to the Union health ministry.
The recovery rate in 19 states and union territories is higher than the national average of 63.02 per cent, it said.
The death toll climbed to 23,174 with 500 people succumbing to the infection, according to the ministry's data updated at 8 am.
The number of recoveries stand at 5,53,470, while there are 3,01,609 active cases of the coronavirus infection currently in the country, and one person has migrated, the data stated.
This is the fourth consecutive day that COVID-19 cases in the country have increased by more than 26,000.
The Centre on Monday asserted that coordinated steps taken by it along with state governments have contributed to a "gradual surge" in the recovery of patients.
It also said that there are 30 states and union territories that have a fatality rate lower than the national average of 2.64 per cent.
The norms and standards for home isolation care along with use of oximeters have also helped to keep a check on asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic patients without burdening the hospital infrastructure, the ministry said in a statement.
"The series of pro-active, pre-emptive and coordinated steps taken by the Centre and the state governments for containment and prevention of COVID-19 has contributed to a gradual surge in COVID-19 recovery," the ministry said.
Aggressive testing coupled with timely diagnosis has led to identifying COVID-affected patients before they progress into an advanced stage of the disease, it said.
Effective implementation of containment zones and surveillance activities ensured that the rate of infection stays under control, the ministry said.
The recovery rate has further improved to 63.02 per cent, the ministry said, adding that 19 states and UTs have a recovery rate higher than the national average.
The states and UTs having a recovery rate higher than the national average include Ladakh (85.45 per cent), Delhi (79.98 per cent), Uttarakhand (78.77 per cent), Chhattisgarh (77.68 per cent), Himachal Pradesh (76.59 per cent), Haryana (75.25 per cent), Chandigarh (74.6 per cent), Rajasthan (74.22 per cent), Madhya Pradesh (73.03 per cent) and Gujarat (69.73 per cent).
Tripura (69.18 per cent), Bihar (69.09 per cent), Punjab (68.94 per cent), Odisha (66.69 per cent), Mizoram(64.94 per cent), Assam (64.87 per cent), Telangana (64.84 per cent), Tamil Nadu (64.66 per cent) and Uttar Pradesh (63.97 per cent) also have a recovery rate higher than the national average.
India's fatality rate has also dropped to 2.64 per cent owing to the increased stress on clinical management of critical cases, the ministry said. AIIMS Delhi continues to handhold Dedicated COVID Hospitals (DCH) through the COVID-19 National Teleconsultation Centre, it said.
Of the 500 new deaths reported, 173 are from Maharashtra, 71 from Karnataka, 68 from Tamil Nadu, 37 from Delhi, 26 from West Bengal, 21 from Uttar Pradesh, 19 from Andhra Pradesh, 13 from Gujarat, 12 from Bihar, 10 from Jammu and Kashmir, nine from Madhya Pradesh, eight from Telangana, seven each from Rajasthan and Jharkhand, four each from Haryana and Punjab, three from Odisha, two each from Kerala, Goa and Chhattisgarh, and one each from Uttarakhand and Chandigarh.
Of the total 23,174 deaths reported so far, Maharashtra accounted for the highest 10,289 fatalities followed by Delhi with 3,371 deaths, Gujarat (2,045), Tamil Nadu (1,966), Uttar Pradesh (934), West Bengal (932), Madhya Pradesh (653), Karnataka (684) and Rajasthan (510).
So far, 356 people have died of COVID-19 in Telangana, 328 in Andhra Pradesh, 301 in Haryana, 199 in Punjab, 179 in Jammu and Kashmir, 143 in Bihar, 64 in Odisha, 47 in Uttarakhand, 35 in Assam and 31 in Kerala.
Jharkhand has registered 30 deaths, Chhattisgarh 19, Puducherry 18, Goa 14, Himachal Pradesh 11, Chandigarh eight, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Tripura two and Ladakh has reported one fatality.
The health ministry stressed that more than 70 per cent of the deaths occurred due to co-morbidities.
According to the Indian Council of Medical Research, 1,18,06,256 samples had been tested for COVID-19 till July 12, of these 2,19,103 samples were tested on Sunday.
The testing per million is continuously growing and was 8555.25 as of Monday.
The testing lab network in the country is further strengthened with 1,200 labs in the country-- 852 labs in the government sector and 348 private labs.
