In a grim first, Maharashtra sees over 20,000 Covid-19 cases in a day
Another day, another unsettling coronavirus disease (Covid-19) record for Maharashtra as it reported more than 20,000 cases inside 24 hours for the first time.
Saturday saw the state recording its highest single-day spike for a fourth day in a row as 20,489 fresh infections took the tally to 883,862. The surge has led to a rise in active cases at 220,661, accounting for 24.96% of the total infections.
The state’s positivity rate (see graphic)— a crucial metric that reveals the fraction of tests that return positive — coupled with an increase in new cases,, paints a concerning picture of the virus’s spread.
Maharashtra also breached the 26,000 mark for Covid-19 casualties after 312 more deaths were reported, of which, 190 were in the past 48 hours, another 90 were from last week, while the remaining 32 were from the period before that, health officials said. The toll is now 26,276.
The high number of casualties continues to be a concern for state authorities as it is still the highest in the country. In the past five days, the state has recorded 1,693 deaths, which is an average of 338 a day. In August, the average was 309 deaths per day, while in July, June, May and April, it was 282, 187, 59 and 14 deaths per day, revealed statistics.
State health minister Rajesh Tope said patients tended to wait till late before coming to hospitals for treatment, which has contributed a significant number of casualties. “Of the total deaths, 30% were within 24 to 48 hours after admission. This indicates they came too late for treatment. By that time their lungs were badly affected and doctors found it difficult to save their lives,” Tope said on Saturday.
This is the reason why the state government said it is focusing more on IEC (information, education and communication) on the pandemic. With more awareness among people, a certain number of deaths can be avoided by means of early detection and treatment, the minister said. He said that the symptoms of Covid-19 can also be determined if pneumonia patches are found on the chest X-ray of a person. If the same person starts getting proper treatment immediately, then his or her life can be saved.
“Considering this, all rural hospitals will now be connected to a centre based in Pune where experienced radiologists will examine chest X-rays on a real-time basis and advise patients as well. This will help in reducing Covid deaths,” the health minister said in Pune.
To cope with the shortage of doctors, they are also assigning 2,000 medical post-graduate students on Covid duty as soon as their ongoing examination process is completed, he added.
The case fatality rate (CFR) of the state was recorded at 2.97% on Saturday. A comparison with Gujarat shows the difference between the neighbouring states is minimal. On Friday, Gujarat’s CFR was 3.03% with 3,076 deaths (101,533 cases), according to statistics shared by the state medical education department.
Public health expert Sanjay Pattiwar said delays were the major reason for such a high toll. “We are noticing that people are either not testing after getting symptoms and don’t get admitted on time even if they tested positive,” said Pattiwar. He said apart from Mumbai, most areas lacked health infrastructure to cater to such type of serious patients which has resulted in high toll in the state. “Another major reason for high toll is those who tested positive are afraid to be admitted and hence delay happens,” he added.
The surge in cases continues to be a challenge for the state. In the last five days of this month, it has recorded over 91,010 cases and its per day average number of cases came to 18,202. According to state health department, Maharashtra recorded 15,765, 17,433, 18,105 and 19,218 infections on September 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively.
The health officials are wary that the surge in cases is likely to increase further as a fresh round of relaxations has come in to effect from September 2. The state has allowed inter-district travel by removing a mandatory condition of e-pass required for travelling and allowed private passenger buses, mini buses to operate. It has allowed to increase the workforce in government and private offices to between 30% and 50%. It has further allowed hotel, lodges and guest houses to operate at their full strength.
Mumbai has recorded 1,737 cases, which is much higher than the daily number of cases seen in August, which ranged between 900 and 1,400. Its tally reached 153,712. Of them, active cases are 22,978.
