Covid-19: 122 deaths push Maharashtra toll above 2,500, case count shy of 75,000

MUMBAI: With 122 Covid-19 deaths recorded on Wednesday—the highest in a day since the start of the outbreak—Maharashtra’s toll surpassed the 2,500 mark to reach 2,587. The state claimed that the rate of increase of cases has nearly halved from 7.76% on May 1 to 4.15% on June 1 even as 2,560 new cases were added on Wednesday, taking the overall case count to 74,860.
State officials said the rate of increase in cases reduced from nearly 8% in May 1 to 6.23% on May 15 and further to 4.15% on June 1. “It was observed that on June 1, it had come down to less than the national average of 4.74%,” the state update said. Public health minister Rajesh Tope added that doubling time too has increased in the meantime. From 9.27 days on May 1, it rose to 11.56 days on May 15 and subsequently touched 15.26 days on May 30 and 17.35 days on June 1. “This proves that the rate of spread of Covid-19 is slowing down in the state,” the public health department said in its statement.
Similarly, in Mumbai, which is the country’s biggest hotspot, the administration said the average daily growth rate of cases reduced to 3.64% between May 27 and June 2. During the same period, the lowest growth rate - 1.9 % - was recorded in E-Ward (Byculla, Mazgaon) which had recorded the second highest number of cases in the city till last week. The highest growth rate of 7.9% was recorded in R-North (Dahisar), which used to be among the second lowest wards in terms of case numbers.
The city on Wednesday recorded 1,276 cases, which took the cumulative number of cases to 43,492, of which 24,597 are active cases and 17,472 patients have recovered. It also recorded 49 deaths, equalling the third highest number of deaths seen in Mumbai in a day. The previous highest number of deaths (116) was recorded on May 29.
G North ward, which includes Dharavi and Mahim, has recorded 3,196 cases since March, with Dharavi contributing most of these. On a positive note, this ward has also witnessed the highest number of discharged patients at 60%.
Civic authorities said that with cyclone Nisarga brining in early rains, the city should now brace for monsoon-related ailments such as dengue, malaria and leptospirosis, among others. “Citizens should watch for any symptoms for the next seven to 10 days. If any symptoms like fever with chills, joint pains, rashes, cough, breathlessness, diarrhoea, vomiting, sore throat, jaundice appear, then they should immediately consult a doctor,” said the civic body in a release.
A total of 96 cases were reported from within Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation areas on Wednesday, taking the total count there to 2,473. Two deaths were also reported during the day, taking the toll to 80. The Panvel City Municipal Corporation area witnessed 15 cases and recorded one death, while the Panvel taluka (rural) and Uran taluka recorded six and three cases respectively. The number of cases in PCMC area, Panvel taluka rural and Uran taluka are 580, 216 and 164 respectively.
Over 300 people tested positive in Pune metropolitan region on Wednesday. The cases in Pune Municipal Corporation limits went over the 7,000 mark, while total cases in Pune metropolitan region reached 8,400.
Of the 122 deaths in the state, the health department stated 57 occurred in the last two days while rest 65 are from the period April 30 to May 31 which have been added to the state’s toll now after review. The health department said that of the total deaths, 72% victims had comorbidities.
The state has also increased the number of laboratories to 82 across the state for Covid-19 diagnosis, of which 46 are run by the government and 36 by private parties. Till date, the state has tested 4.97 lakh samples, of which 74,860 have tested positive. Currently, almost 5.72 lakh people are in home quarantine and 33,674 in institutional quarantine.