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Maharashtra conducts over 1.61 lakh Covid-19 tests, state tally nears 12,300-mark
The overall death toll due to Covid-19 in Maharashtra stood at 521 on Sunday, according to the Union health ministry’s figures, compared with 283 on April 23. The total number of positive cases in the state are now 12,296 while it was 6,427 on April 22.
Maharashtra has conducted over 1.61 lakh tests for coronavirus, according to the state health department data released on Saturday night.
Out of these, 1,61,092 tests for Covid-19 were conducted in 54 government labs and the remaining by private labs. The state had reached the one lakh testing mark on April 24 after which on May 1, it crossed the 1.50 lakh mark.
The worst-affected state in the country recorded 5,869 Covid-19 cases between April 22 and May 2, taking the 10 days daily average in the same day to 586 cases daily.
The overall death toll in the state stood at 521 on Sunday, according to the Union health ministry’s figures, compared with 283 on April 23. The total number of positive cases in the state are now 12,296 while it was 6,427 on April 22.
Of these, 2,381 positive cases were reported in the last four days between April 29 and May 2, 2020. The number of deaths, too, went up drastically in the last four days from 432 on April 29 to 521, as of Sunday. The biggest spike of positive cases was on May 1, when the state recorded around 1,008 cases in one single day, the highest single day spike yet.
On Saturday, Maharashtra breached the 500-mark for coronavirus disease (Covid-19) deaths after it recorded its highest single-day figure of 36 fatalities, taking the toll to 521. The state recorded 790 new cases — its third-highest 24-hour jump — taking the infection count to 12,296.
Of the deaths recorded on Saturday, Mumbai reported 27, three were in Pune city, two in Amravati city and one each in Vasai-Virar, Amravati district and Aurangabad city. Besides these, Mumbai also recoded one person’s death who belonged to West Bengal.
The state’s mortality rate in the state stands at 4.23%, but the number of deaths is increasing as 198 deaths have occurred since April 27 alone. The country’s mortality rate hovers around 3.25%.
Mumbai, on Saturday, also crossed the 8,000 Covid-19 cases mark with 547 new infections. Its tally is 8,359. The state capital, which had crossed the 4,000-mark on April 23, doubled its count to 8,000 in just nine days. As cases continue to mount in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad, Malegaon, the state government, which issued guidelines for extension of lockdown on Saturday, imposed restrictions in most of these areas.
Relaxation in lockdown norms
With the third phase of the nationwide lockdown starting from Monday, the state government has issued relaxation in varying degrees across Maharashtra’s red, orange and green zones to gradually allow businesses and individuals to resume normal lives. In a detailed order, the state government has outlined activities permitted and prohibited in the red, orange, and green zones.
The guidelines stipulated that individuals engaged in non-essential activity shall not move out between 7pm and 7am; and the elderly, those with co-morbidities, pregnant women and young children would stay home. It also had detailed instructions on the precautions to be taken in workplaces and public places, with an emphasis on social distancing and the use of masks.
As per the order, all domestic and international air travel of passengers, except those permitted by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA); inter-state public transport buses, except those permitted by MHA; inter-district public transport; Metro rail services; passenger train services; all schools, colleges, coaching, training institutions; all cinema halls, shopping malls, gymnasiums, sports complexes, swimming pools, entertainment parks, theatres, bars and auditoriums, religious places; sports, cultural and religious functions and congregations, will remain prohibited irrespective of zones.
Maharashtra has 14 districts in the red zone, including Mumbai, Mumbai suburban, Thane, and Palghar districts, where the lockdown will be strictly implemented. Besides these districts, Pune, Nashik, Nagpur, Solapur and Aurangabad districts are also in the red zones. Yavatmal, Satara, Dhule, Akola and Jalgaon are also in the red zone, but would see fewer restrictions as against the hotpot areas in Mumbai, Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Pune, Pune Metropolitan Region (PMR) and Malegaon in Nashik district.
In the red zone which is defined by taking into account total active cases, doubling rate, etc, autorickshaws, cycle rickshaws, taxi, cab aggregators, intra-district and inter-district of plying of buses, barber shops, and salons will not be permitted.
The municipal areas of Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Pune, Malegaon and Pimpri Chinchwad have got several restrictions, including the opening of shops, private offices, and government offices.
All standalone shops, neighbourhood shops, and shops in residential complexes — without any distinction between essential and non-essential — can also function, except those in the municipal corporation areas of MMR, Malegaon Municipal Corporation, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC). The order makes a mention opening of liquor shops in the annexure, but it has not been clarified whether these shops will open across zones. A senior state government official said that the stores would permitted to open in orange and green zones, with strict compliance of social distancing.
E-commerce will, however, be confined to essential goods. Private offices can also now function, up to 33% of their strength, except in MMR, PMC, PCMC and Malegaon. All government offices except in the areas of Mumbai, MMR, Pune, PCMC, and Malegaon will function up to the level of 100%, above the rank of deputy secretary, and 33% below that in red zones.
In urban areas, special economic zones (SEZs), export-oriented units (EOUs), industrial estates, industrial townships with access control will be allowed to function except those in the municipal corporation areas of MMR, Malegaon Municipal Corporation, PMC and PCMC.
In-situ construction activities in urban areas have been permitted where no workers have to be brought in from outside. While all construction activities are permitted in rural areas, pre-monsoon work related to metro work and other such projects shall be permitted by municipal bodies. Pre-monsoon work of waterproofing of roofs, flood-protection, propping and structural repairs of buildings, demolition of unsafe buildings will be permitted.
Sixteen districts (Raigad, Ahmednagar, Amravati, Buldhana, Nandurbar, Kolhapur, Hingoli, Ratnagiri, Jalna, Nanded, Chandrapur, Sangli, Latur, Parbhani, Bhandara and Beed) have fewer cases in their rural parts — in single digits. These 16 districts are in the orange zone, where activities barred in red zone would be permitted.
Maharashtra has six districts in the green zone. Gadchiroli and Wardha have no Covid-19 patients, while Gondia has not reported any new case in the past 35 days. Osmanabad has three cases, while Sindhudurg and Washim have two cases each. In the green zone, buses can operate with 50% capacity. However, buses will not be allowed to ply outside the zone.
Migrants leave for UP
Meanwhile, migrant labourers from shelter camps in Nashik district were sent to Uttar Pradesh by the special ‘Shramik’ train on Saturday. These workers walked from Mumbai, Thane and other areas to reach their villages in the northern state. They were housed in shelter camps after all state borders were sealed after the lockdown was imposed.
A special outstation train with nearly 1,200 migrant workers left from Bhiwandi Road station on Saturday night. The train will operate between Bhiwandi and Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh and will not halt at any railway station. A second special train is also likely to depart for Gorakhpur on Sunday late evening. The train is likely to be operated from Vasai Road railway station.
