There was no let up in the ever increasing number of coronavirus cases in Kerala as the State diagnosed nearly 500 persons with covid-19 on Saturday, making it the highest number of cases to be traced in a single day.

The day saw 488 persons testing positive against Friday’s 416 cases, according to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

He disclosed in a virtual media meet on Saturday that 167 of those diagnosed with the pandemic were expatriates while 76 were those who returned to the State from other parts of the country. In yet another indication that community transmission has set in the State, 234 persons who tested were infected through social contacts. The State also saw two sexagenarians succumbing to the pandemic on the day.

The Chief Minister said that Kerala would enter the community transmission phase soon. “Right now we are undergoing the Super Spread stage which means that the pandemic from one person reaches hundreds in a region. Once more and more places come under the Super Spread phase, it is a matter of time before the community transmission sets in,” he said.

“The Opposition parties’ attempt to derail the Covid prevention programme initiated by the Government  is the reason behind the surge in the number of cases seen in Kerala. They are staging unreasonable demonstrations across the State for flimsy reasons violating the Covid Protocol. I warn them that their action is as good as a criminal offence and the Government would not hesitate to take action against those who violate the guidelines like wearing face masks and not observing social/physical distance,” said Vijayan.

He was referring to the demonstrations and protest marches staged by the Congress and the BJP across the State demanding the resignation of the Chief Minister in connection with the gold smuggling activity that was busted by the Customs Department at Thiruvananthapuram last Sunday.

Vijayan disclosed that 570 persons were admitted to hospitals in the State on Saturday. There are 196 hotspots in the State while the day saw 143 persons getting cured of the disease, he said.