New Delhi, Dec 28 (IANS): India on Monday logged 20,021 fresh Covid-19 infections taking the total number of cases to 1,02,07,871, along with 279 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the tally of fatalities to 1,47,901, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said.

In the last 24 hours, 21,131 people have recovered, taking the total number of the recovered people to 97,82,669. There are 2,77,301 active cases. The recovery rate stands at 95.83 percent while the fatality rate is 1.45 percent.

A total of 16,88,18,054 samples have been tested for Covid-19 till now. Of these, 7,15,397 samples were tested on Sunday, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said.

Maharashtra continues to be the worst-hit state to date with 19,13,382 cases.

Over 70 percent of the daily new cases are being reported by 10 states and union territory -- Kerala, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Over 75 percent of the deaths are being reported from Maharashtra, Delhi, West Bengal, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh.

A new strain of the Covid-19 virus has appeared in the UK. The mutant is said to be 70 percent more aggressive, according to reports. Flights and other forms of transport to and from the UK are being shut down.