Puducherry, Aug 31 (PTI) Puducherry recorded 115 fresh COVID-19 cases during the last 24 hours ending 10 a.m. on Tuesday raising the overall tally to 1,23,572.The new cases were identified at the end of examination of 5,402 samples and were spread over Puducherry 57, Karaikal 37, Yanam 5 and Mahe 16.There were 715 active cases of whom 158 were in hospitals and the remaining 557 in home isolation.While 67 patients recovered and were discharged during last twenty-four hours, the overall recoveries were 1,21,045.No fresh fatality was reported from any of the four regions of Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam and fatalities remained 1,812.Director of the Department G Sriramulu said the health department had tested so far 16.41 lakh samples and found 13.93 lakh out of them to be negative.The test positivity rate was 2.13 percent while fatality and recovery rates were 1.47 percent and 97.96 percent respectively.The Director said that 38,129 health care workers and 23,004 front line workers were inoculated against the pandemic so far. The Department has vaccinated 5.67 lakh people coming under the category of either senior citizens or those above 45 years with co morbidities have been inoculated so far. In all the department has vaccinated so far 8.11 lakh people including those who received the second dose, the Director said.Meanwhile, Health Secretary T Arun said in a release that the health department has decided to conduct 48 hour long non- stop vaccination programme from 8 a.m. on September 3 to 8 a.m. on September 5. The vaccination would be administered in all the government hospitals and primary health centres. Arun said that the purpose of this special drive was to ensure that Puducherry emerged as "corona free and 100 percent vaccinated" Union Territory.He appealed to all those eligible for vaccination to use the opportunity. PTI COR ROH ROH