E-Paper
Maharashtra: No new Covid-19 positive cases recorded today so far, total tally 3,202
Mumbai is still the most affected city in the country as far as Covid-19 positive cases are concerned. The city recorded 177 new Covid-19 positive cases on Thursday and the total number of cases rose to 2,073.
Maharashtra did not record a single coronavirus disease (Covid-19) positive case on Friday morning, as the total count remained the same in the state at 3,202 cases.
On Thursday, the state recorded 286 new Covid-19 cases and seven deaths, as overall fatalities rose to 194.
Mumbai is still the most affected city in the country as far as Covid-19 positive cases are concerned. The city recorded 177 new Covid-19 positive cases on Thursday and the total number of cases rose to 2,073. So far, Mumbai has reported 117 Covid-19 related deaths, according to the state health ministry’s data.
Coronavirus outbreak: Full coverage
The number of Covid-19 positive cases in Dharavi, Asia’s largest slum, has tripled in the past five days, from 28 cases on April 11 to 86 on April 16, and the death toll has also risen from four to nine during this period, the health ministry said.
On Thursday, Dharavi saw its biggest spike, as 26 new Covid-19 cases were reported, including 11 from Muslim Nagar and one each from Janata Society, Suryoday Society, Shiv Shakti Nagar, besides other areas, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) authorities said. A 58-year-old man from Dharavi’s Laxmi Chawl, who had tested Covid-19 positive last week, died on Thursday.
State health minister Rajesh Tope on Friday said that about 51,000 samples have been tested for Covid-19 in Maharashtra so far. “Of the 51,000 samples, over 24,000 have been tested in Mumbai alone,” Tope said. “We have a total of 30 Covid-19 testing laboratories in the state, including 15 government and another 15 private labs. Soon, six more testing labs will be added to this list,” he said.
“We are increasing our capacity of labs so that the time lapse between sample collection and test result can be minimised,” he added.
Maharashtra government has also sought the Centre’s permission to conduct pool testing for Covid-19 patients amid a spike in the number of cases for the better part of this week, except Friday. “We’ve been conducting rapid testing so far. Now, we have sought the permission of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), a Central government-run body, to conduct pool testing,” Tope said. This would help the state government to test more people in less time, he added. “The state government has already sought the Centre’s permission for starting clinical trials of plasma therapy and BCG (Bacillus Calmette-Guérin) vaccine administered to newborns and children to prevent tuberculosis for treating Covid-19 patients,” Tope said.
State industries minister Subhash Desai said that plans are afoot to begin industrial operations in some districts, which have been declared as Green Zone, as no Covid-19 cases have been reported there to date. “We are preparing a proposal to begin industrial operations in some of the districts that come under the Green Zone category while adhering to the Centre’s guidelines for the second phase of the lockdown restrictions that are in place till May 3. The industrial units will be allowed to resume their operations in strict compliance with the standing operating procedures laid down by the state government,” he said.
Maharashtra is also planning to increase its workforce in government offices to 33% from next week. The state’s senior officials held discussions via video-conference on Thursday on the Centre’s guidelines on the easing of lockdown restrictions in some of the areas that are least affected by the viral outbreak.
Meanwhile, a case was registered against a man for allegedly assaulting a woman police personnel who was on duty at Kalyan taluka in Thane district to enforce the ongoing lockdown restrictions, the police said on Friday.
A woman police naik, who was posted at Mharal village in Thane district, spotted the accused driving a car in a rash manner, an official said.
When the official intercepted the vehicle, the accused abused and manhandled her, during which she sustained injuries, he said.
The accused was charged under Sections 353 (assaulting a public servant) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and no arrest has been made in the case so far, he said.
(Additional reporting by agencies)
