328 new cases push Maharashtra tally to 3,648

Maharashtra on Saturday registered a sharp rise in the number of Covid-19 cases as 328 people tested positive for the disease and took the state’s tally to 3,648, the state government said.

Maharashtra on Saturday registered a sharp rise in the number of Covid-19 cases as 328 people tested positive for the disease and took the state’s tally to 3,648, the state government said. The number of people tested positive was more than double of those diagnosed with Covid-19 on Friday--118.

Of the new cases recorded on Saturday, 184 were from Mumbai, which now has a tally of 2,268, followed by Pune with 78. (Reuters file photo)

Of the new cases recorded on Saturday, 184 were from Mumbai, which now has a tally of 2,268, followed by Pune with 78. This is the third time this month that the state has reported over 300 cases in a day. Maharashtra also reported 11 Covid-19 related deaths on Saturday, taking the toll from the disease to 211.

Officials said the trajectory of the cases needs to plateau by April 21 for it to remain under control. “We expect the cases to dip after the two 14-day incubation cycles, which began on March 22 when over 2.20 lakh people arrived at the Mumbai airport, end. If the containment is good, it would go down,” said T P Lahane, director, directorate of medical education and research.

Officials said the mortality rate in Maharashtra has also undergone a gradual decline even as it is still double that of the country. After touching the 7%-mark on April 12, the mortality rate is decreasing primarily due to early admission of Covid-19 patients to hospitals and also due to concentrated efforts to treat patients with underlying illnesses, officials said. The mortality rate on April 14, 15, 16 and 17 was 6.84%, 6.61%, 6.41% and 6.05%.

Lahane said the mortality rate is slowly decreasing because of early admissions of patients to hospitals. “Earlier, most patients died between the first day and third day of admission. Now, it happens after six to seven days after admission in critical cases. When they are in the hospital, we can monitor their lungs, blood-pressure etc.”

A health department official also attributed the reduction in deaths in the last few days to a more “focused” approach of treating patients with comorbidities. “More attention is being given to patients with underlying illnesses with early admissions. It helps hospitals to treat them well so that they do not become critical cases,” an official said requesting anonymity.

The state government on Saturday started 25 more dedicated hospitals for treating Covid-19 patients. With this, the number of such facilities has gone up to 55 with a total capacity of 6,660 beds, said Rajesh Tope, state health minister.

The state government has also got permission from the Indian Council of Medical Research to start six new laboratories for Covid-19 tests, state medical education minister Amit Deshmukh said.

The total number of laboratories in the state has now gone up to 42 that with a capacity of 7,600 tests daily.

The Maharashtra government also on Saturday issued orders that its employees will start working from Monday with 10% strength. The new order also made attendance of secretaries, joint or deputy secretaries, mandatory. Women officers can be exempted from it by orders of the departmental heads. On March 23, the state government had issued orders that it would operate with only 5% of the staff.

The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation or municipal corporation buses will be used to ferry government employees from Monday. With the suburban railway network shut due to the lockdown, the buses will be operational between 7 am to 11 am and 4 pm to 7 pm, a state government order state.

The state government has also decided to provide financial assistance of Rs 2,000 to all the registered construction workers for them to tide over hardships caused by the lockdown. An order in this regard came days after hundreds of migrant workers gathered outside the Bandra railway station demanding they be sent back to their homes last week.

The one-time monetary help will be credited into the bank accounts of over 1.2 million workers, officials said. The assistance will cost the state government around Rs 250 crore.

The state on Friday allowed construction work in cities, including Mumbai and Pune, with a rider that prior permission from civic authorities will be mandatory.