Bhubaneswar: Odisha reported one more COVID-19 fatality on Saturday, taking the death toll due to the disease to 18 in the state, as 170 more people, including an NDRF jawan, tested positive for the coronavirus, pushing the tally of such cases to 6,350.
In a statement, the state health department said a 68-year-old COVID-positive man died in Ganjam district.
The victim was also suffering from co-morbid conditions of hypertension and diabetes, it said.
With this, the COVID-19 death toll in Ganjam district climbed to nine. Four deaths were reported from Khurda, three from Cuttack and one each was reported from Bargarh and Puri. The state had reported its first COVID-19 death in Bhubaneswar on April 6, an official said.
Seven other COVID-positive persons have also died, but these deaths were due to other diseases, he added.
Of the 170 fresh coronavirus cases, 143 were reported from quarantine centres, where people returning from other states are lodged for preliminary observation, while the remaining 27 patients were locals, the official said.
The number of active COVID-19 cases in Odisha stands at 1,903 as 4,422 people have recovered from the disease.
Of the fresh cases, 169 were reported from 14 districts while one belonged to the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF).
Fifty-eight cases were reported from Ganjam, followed by 19 each from Khurda and Nabarangpur districts, 16 each from Gajapati and Rayagada, 14 from Cuttack, six each from Puri and Kendrapara, five from Malkangiri, three each from Jajpur and Nayagarh, two from Sambalpur and one case each was reported from Koraput and Bargarh, the information and public relations department said.
The Ganjam district administration said the 58 new cases include 18 frontline workers such as doctors, health workers, police personnel and administrative staff.
The NDRF jawan, who tested positive for the disease, had returned from Cyclone Amphan restoration duty in West Bengal. The number of NDRF, ODRAF and Odisha Fire Service personnel infected with the virus has increased to 290. All of them had returned from cyclone duty in West Bengal.
As many as 184 patients recovered from the disease on Saturday, taking the number of cured COVID-19 patients in the state to 4,606.
The state now has 1,719 active cases.
An official statement said the returnees who have completed the mandatory institutional quarantine period have been given Rs 2,000 each.
A total sum of Rs 56,51,94,000 has been paid to them so far, it said.
Altogether 5,79,646 people stranded in different parts of the country have returned to Odisha since May 3.
Meanwhile, at least 179 cases of violation of COVID-19 guidelines have been registered in Cuttack district so far and a total fine amount of over Rs 13 lakh has been collected from the offenders, a senior official said.
The district has reported 537 coronavirus cases so far.