JAIPUR: Rajasthan recorded 139 new cases of coronavirus on Saturday, taking the tally of such cases in the state to 700, an official said.
The virus has so far claimed nine lives in the state.
"A 62-year-old man who was admitted at the state-run SMS Hospital on April 9 died on Friday. He was tested positive today. He was suffering from ischemic heart disease and hypertension. As many as 139 new cases have come up today," Additional Chief Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh said.
The total number of coronavirus positive cases in the state has risen to 700, he said.
Singh said 116 people have so far tested negative for coroanvirus after treatment and 58 people have been discharged.
Among the fresh cases, 80 are from Jaipur, 20 in Tonk, 14 in Kota, 13 in Banswara, six in Bikaner, two in Jhalawar and one each in Dausa, Alwar, Karauli and Jaisalmer district, the official said.
In Jaipur, most of the cases are from Ramganj area where curfew has been clamped, he said.
The official said two Italian citizens apart from the 50 people brought back from Iran and quarantined at Army health centres in Jodhpur and Jaisalmer are among the total COVID-19 cases in Rajasthan.
The capital city of Jaipur has reported the highest number of coronavirus cases at 301.
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The desert state has been under a lockdown from March 22, three days before the nationwide restrictions were imposed, while large-scale survey and screening is underway to trace the contagion.
Singh said more positive cases are being traced, especially in Ramganj area, due to aggressive testing to identify the real magnitude of the problem.
"We will test about 25,000 by today evening which is one of the highest in the country," he said.
The senior official also said that the recovery rate is pretty high in the state.
He said there are 10 places in Rajasthan where there are more than 10 cases and these are the real hotspots.
The officer said most of the cases are asymptomatic.
"The age profile of patients in Rajasthan is favourably disposed due to our demographic profile. Hence, most people will recover unless they have other health issues. Patients requiring critical care will be approximately 2-3 per cent of positive cases," he said.
"To measure community transmission in a scientific manner, we are soon starting a cluster-based sampling exercise to get a clearer idea of the magnitude of the incidence of COVID-19," he added.