Raipur, Dec 30 (PTI) Chhattisgarh on Thursday continued to witness a surge in COVID-19 cases with 150 people testing positive for the infection, which took its overall tally to 10,07,997, an official said.

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This is the second consecutive day when more than 100 cases were reported in the state. The number of cases had dropped below 100-mark in mid August this year and the number steadily kept going down after that.

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The death toll remained unchanged at 13,600 as no fatality was reported during the day, while the recovery count increased to 9,93,800 after five persons were discharged from hospitals and 11 others completed their home isolation during the day, leaving the state with 597 active cases, he said.

"Raigarh recorded 32 cases, followed by 31 in Bilaspur, 28 in Raipur and 21 in Korba. No fresh case was reported in 12 districts. With 24,710 samples being examined during the day, the number of tests in the state went up to 1,49,11,395,” the official said.

Meanwhile, state chief secretary Amitabh Jain chaired a meeting of all divisional commissioners, collectors and chief medical and health officers (CMHO) through video conferencing to deal with the possible third wave of coronavirus after cases of the Omicron variant of the infection being reported from several parts of the country.

"Jain directed officials to start necessary preparations on a war footing to deal with the third wave of COVID-19 in the state," a government statement said.

He also asked them to check the functioning of all medical equipment and resources provided to the districts within the next two days.

Jain asked the officials to ensure strict compliance of social distancing, mask wearing and preventive protocols, it said.

"As per the directives, public places like hotels, cinema halls, theaters, among others, be allowed to function with 33 per cent (one third) of its seating capacity and the permission of collectors is necessary before organising social events," it said.

The chief secretary asked the officials to keep information about people entering Chhattisgarh from states like Delhi, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, where the infection rate is increasing rapidly, and carry out their screening, the release said.

Chhattisgarh's coronavirus figures are as follows: Positive cases 10,07,997, new cases 150, death toll 13,600, recoveries 9,93,800, active cases 597, total tests 1,49,11,395.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)