Agra continues to be a Covid-19 hotspot in Uttar Pradesh. The district recorded 17 cases of the disease on Tuesday, taking the overall number to 241.

The Niti Aayog, the central government’s think tank, has included Agra in the list of high caseload areas that are “critical” in the battle against Covid-19.

The district has so far seen 12 Covid-19 related deaths.

A 67-year-old patient died of Covid-19 in Agra, and was cremated according to the protocols to be followed for the disease. The man was undergoing dialysis in a hospital in the city. The entire staff in the dialysis wing has been quarantined.

Meanwhile, fresh cases were reported from Varanasi (12) and Kanpur (8).

“Three Covid-19 deaths took place in the state, taking the death toll in the state to 34. Two deaths were reported from Agra, while one death took place in Kanpur,” Dr Vikasendu Agrawal, Joint Director/State Surveillance Officer, Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) said.

The fresh cases brought the total count in the state’s 60 districts to 2,053, the statement said.

Agarwal said 64 patients were discharged from hospitals on Tuesday after recovery from the infection, taking the total number of cured people to 462 in the state.

The count of active Covid-19 cases in the state stands at 1,557.