The Chinese city of Xi'an in Shaanxi Province has registered 175 confirmed cases in a single day, the highest daily increase since the outbreak started earlier this month.
This is the highest single-day spike since the outbreak started on December 9, state media tabloid Global Times reported. This is for the third consecutive day the city has reported over 100 cases.
Among 175 cases is a six-month-old infant, the youngest confirmed case in this round of outbreaks in the country, GT report said.
The city-wide disinfection campaign in epidemic-hit Xi'an city has triggered controversy online.
The latest outbreak in Xi'an has affected 21 cities in 15 provinces and regions, including Shaanxi, Guangdong Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
Earlier this week, more than two dozen officials in China's Shaanxi provinces were punished by the authorities for their ineffective preventive measures in tackling the COVID-19 spread in the city of Xi'an, Xinhua reported.
The Chinese Central Commission for Discipline Inspection on Friday has punished 26 officials and four local party organizations have been punished for "ineffective preventive measures".
China on Wednesday had locked down the entire 13 million residents of Xi'an after the COVID-19 cluster was found in the area. Chinese Officials believe the cluster is linked to an inbound flight from Pakistan on December 4.
( With inputs from ANI )
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