According to state officials, the focus is now on Mumbai and Pune, which together account for 72 per cent of state’s case load. (Representational)
With 10,000 cases recorded in the last four days, the number of novel coronavirus cases in Maharashtra crossed the 50,000-mark Sunday with 3,041 fresh cases, the highest in a single day so far. The overall patient count in the state now stands at 50,231, of which Mumbai alone accounts for 30,452 cases.
The total death toll in the state reached 1,654, including 988 deaths in Mumbai. Of the 58 deaths reported Sunday, 39 were from Mumbai, six each from Solapur and Pune, four from Aurangabad, and one each from Latur, Thane, and Mira Bhayandar.
According to state officials, the focus is now on Mumbai and Pune, which together account for 72 per cent of state’s case load. On Sunday, Mumbai breached 30,000-mark with 1,725 new detections, while the number of cases in Pune city, which has also seen a steady rise in the case graph, crossed the 5,000-mark with 270 new cases.
In Mumbai, data analysed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, shows the city saw a 6.61 per cent growth in Covid-19 cases between May 16 and 22. Thirteen wards — R-Central ward, R-South ward, H-West, P-South, P-North, F-South, K-East, H-East, and T-ward, S-Ward, N-Ward, L-Ward, and C-Ward — in the city have registered more than seven per cent spike, higher than the city’s rate. In eight of these wards, BMC officials said, the growth rate is much faster and stricter containment measures were required along with citizen’s involvement to ensure social distancing.
Meanwhile, officials said, five per cent of the active Covid-19 cases in the state are critical that is over 1,600 people, and about 24 per cent (over 8,000) have mild to moderate symptoms. Till Sunday, 14,600 patients had recovered, which is 29 per cent of the total case burden. More than five lakh people, however, continue to remain under quarantine across the state, of the 35,107 are in institutional quarantine facilities, like hotels, lodges, guest houses, sports complexes, colleges, and schools.
As cases escalate, the state is desperately trying to scale up beds and appoint more medical and para-medical staff, officials said. District hospitals in Raigad, Malegaon, Jalgaon, and Solapur have also been told to prepare for an expected surge. The state, so far, has roped in more than 60 laboratories for Covid-19 tests.