Maharashtra reports over 15,000 new Covid-19 cases for fourth successive day

The related death toll rose by 48 on the day, the health department’s bulletin showed, taking the total fatalities to 52,909. More than 2.14 million people have recovered from the viral disease so far in the western state while active cases have climbed to 130,547, the data showed.

Maharashtra on Monday witnessed a slight dip in its latest daily cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), as 15,051 fresh infections were registered on the day, according to the health department, pushing the state’s infection tally to 2,329,464. This is the fourth day in a row that there have been more than 15,000 new cases in Maharashtra, which saw 16,620 infections on Sunday, its highest in 164 days.

Maharashtra’s capital city of Mumbai, meanwhile also witnessed a slight fall on Monday as 1,713 cases were detected here as against 1,963 on Sunday. (HT file photo)

The related death toll rose by 48 on the day, the health department’s bulletin showed, taking the total fatalities to 52,909. More than 2.14 million people have recovered from the viral disease so far in the western state while active cases have climbed to 130,547, the data showed.

As many as 10,671 people were tested for the infection which led to the detection of Monday’s cases, the data further showed.

Maharashtra’s capital city of Mumbai, meanwhile also witnessed a slight fall on Monday as 1,713 cases were detected here as against 1,963 on Sunday. The caseload in Mumbai has climbed to 345,675 of which 11,539 have died, including four on the day.

The overall Covid-19 situation in Maharashtra has been worsening since early February which has led to authorities imposing lockdown, night curfews and curbs in several cities and districts such as Nagpur, Pune, Nanded among others. Nagpur entered a week-long total lockdown on Monday while night curfew has been imposed in Pune from 11pm to 6am and in Nanded from 7pm to 7am.

State health minister Rajesh Tope warned that lockdown may also be imposed in other districts witnessing a rise in Covid-19 cases. However, Tope also observed that while the number of daily cases in Maharashtra were increasing in the last few days, the mortality rate remained low. “People should also observe self-discipline by ensuring physical distancing, wearing face masks and washing hands regularly. Follow rules to avoid new lockdown,” the minister told news agency PTI.

Meanwhile, 2,832,150 doses of the vaccine to combat Covid-19 have been administered in Maharashtra thus far of which 2,427,213 beneficiaries have received the first dose and the remaining 404,937 have been administered the second dose as well. With a view to speed up the vaccination drive, the state government on March 11 had allowed all vaccination centres to operate round the clock. However, this provision is only limited to those centres which have sufficient staff.