Kolkata, May 5 (PTI) Seven people died due to COVID-19 in West Bengal in the last 24 hours, taking the death toll in the state to 68, Home Secretary Alapan Bandopadhyay said on Tuesday.

The number of active cases in the state rose to 940, after 85 fresh cases were reported during the same period, Bandyopadhyay said.

At least 46 people were discharged from different hospitals in the state since Monday evening, following their recovery, he said. The number of people who have recovered in the state so far stands at 264.

A total of 2,455 samples were tested for the disease in the last 24 hours, he said. The total number of samples tested in the state jumped to 27,571.

Bengal has reported 1,344 COVID-19 cases so far, Bandopadhyay said.

The Union Health Ministry, however, put the figure at 1,259.

(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)