Maharashtra records more than 5,000 Covid-19 cases for fifth consecutive day

State records more than 5,000 cases for fifth consecutive day

The state registered 5,753 Covid-19 cases, more than 5,000 for the fifth consecutive day, taking the tally to 1,780,208 on Sunday, as deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar hinted at a potential lockdown in the near future. With 50 deaths clocked in the past 24 hours, the toll touched 46,623. Mumbai, too, saw a rise in daily caseload as the number crossed 1,100 after 22 days. A total of 1,135 new infections took the tally to 275,714.

A healthcare worker collects a swab sample of a resident at Malad (East) on Saturday. (Satyabrata Tripathy/HT Photo)

In the wake of the rise in cases and anticipated spike over the next few weeks, Pawar said a decision over imposition of lockdown could be taken after a review after eight to 10 days. He said the number of cases is expected to rise because of the drop in the temperature and crowding during Diwali.

“In many other states, a surge in Covid-19 cases is being witnessed. There is a need to be cautious for the next few weeks. Like during Ganesh festival, people stepped out of their houses during Diwali in huge numbers. We have been in discussion with the departments concerned to take a call on lockdown,” he said.

Pawar said the crowding during Diwali was uncalled for. “We did not take action for violation of the Covid protocol as it was a festive season, but strict action needs to be taken now. I do not want to create panic by saying anything related to the lockdown at this stage,” he said.

As part of the preparedness to fight the potential surge in the Covid-19 cases, the state authorities have increased testing. Super spreaders are being aggressively tapped through tracing drive to contain the spread of virus.

The daily average of the tests in the past three days (November 20-22) has increased to 82,636 from 42,978 daily a week before. A total of 92,556 tests were conducted in the past 24 hours, with the positivity rate of 6.21%. The overall positivity rate stands at 17.43%.

Followed by Mumbai, Pune clocked 770 cases (241 in rural parts, 323 in city and 206 in Pimpri-Chinchwad), Nagpur reported 483 cases, Ahmednagar logged 293 cases and Nashik reported 211 cases.

Of the 50 deaths reported on Sunday, 30 are from the past two days, 6 reported over past one week, while remaining 14 are from the period before, according to the state health department.

Of them, 19 are from Mumbai, 11 from Pune, 12 from Nagpur. The state’s case fatality rate stands at 2.62%.

State authorities have stated that the rise in the number of cases is owing to the increase in testing post Diwali.

“It is true that in the past five days, the number of cases has risen, but the comparison is with the caseload registered during Diwali, when people tend to not report the illness to doctors. We have also started tapping super-spreaders like vegetable vendors and shopkeepers to contain the spread. Our positivity rate is still in control at 7.5%, which means the situation is under control. There is a possibility of a major spike in cases by the end of December, but we are trying to keep it restricted by launching a massive outreach programme,” said Dr Pradeep Awate, state surveillance officer. Dr Awate said the state authorities will roll out the third phase of ‘My Family, My Responsibility’ initiative in December to identify the suspected patients.

With 4,060 patients reported to have recovered in the past 24 hours, the number of active patients dropped to 81,512, with the recovery rate reaching 92.75%. The state has 515,976 patients under home quarantine and 5,615 are in institutional quarantine.