Active cases of COVID-19 in India remained below the five-lakh mark with its share in the total coronavirus infection reported so far further shrinking to 4.6 per cent, according to the Union Health Ministry.

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More than 14.13 crore tests for the detection of coronavirus infection have been conducted so far, while the cumulative positivity rate has declined from 7.15 per cent on November 11 to 6.69 per cent on December 1, the Union Health Secretary said on December 1. The average daily positivity rate last week has been 3.72 per cent.

In the month of November, more than 10.55 lakh tests were conducted daily, while on an average 43,152 new cases and 47,159 recoveries were recorded each day, the Union Health Secretary said at a press briefing on actions taken, preparedness and updates on COVID-19. He said India still figures among the countries having the lowest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths per million population. "In the last seven days, 211 cases and two deaths per million population have occurred in the country. Over the last three weeks, a continuous decline in cumulative positivity rate has been seen. A decline in daily new cases is also continuing.

"This apart, the website 'Our World in Data' stated that between September 1 - November 29, India has been ahead of countries like Russia, France and the UK, in terms of the number of COVID-19 tests conducted," the Union Health Secretary said. The Union health secretary also informed the press briefing that the top five states that have shown a decline in active cases during last month are Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal.

The top five states showing a rise in active cases during the same period were Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan.  the Union Health Secretary further remarked, "In November, the number of recoveries has been more than the number of new cases. As a result, the number of active cases in the country is continuously declining."

Daily new recoveries exceeding new cases has led to a net reduction of active caseload to 4,35,603. A net decline of 11,349 cases has been recorded in the total active cases in a day, the ministry said in a statement. A total of 31,118 new infections was added to the national tally in a day.

While some states like Kerala, Delhi, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh have witnessed a decline in the active caseload in a span of 24 hours, others such as Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Assam and Goa have reported an addition to their caseload. In contrast to 31,118 new reported COVID-19 cases, 41,985 people have recovered in a day. The total recovered cases stand at 88,89,585 which translates to a recovery rate of 93.94 per cent. "The gap between recoveries and active cases continues to grow and presently stands at 84,53,982," the health ministry said.

Of the new recovered cases, 76.82 per cent are observed to be concentrated in 10 states and Union Territories with Kerala reporting the maximum 6,055 single-day recoveries followed by Delhi which saw 5,824 people recuperating. The ministry said that 77.79 per cent of the new cases were concentrated in 10 states and Union Territories. Maharashtra reported the maximum 3,837 new cases in a day, followed by 3,726 in Delhi and 3,382 in Kerala.

Further, 10 states and Union Territories account for 81.12 per cent of the 482 case fatalities reported in a span of 24 hours. Of these, Delhi reported 108 deaths, followed by Maharashtra and West Bengal which recorded 80 and 48 more fatalities respectively. The total number of coronavirus cases mounted to 94,62,809 on December 1 with 31,118 new infections being reported in a day, while the death toll climbed to 1,37,621 with 482 new fatalities.