Maharashtra heading towards another COVID-19 peak, says state health minister
- 'We are moving toward another peak in infections of COVID-19 but there is no need to panic', Maharashtra health minister said
Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope on Thursday said that Maharashtra is heading towards another COVID-19 peak. "We are moving toward another peak in infections of COVID-19 but there is no need to panic. About 95 of all patients are asymptomatic," Tope said, according to news agency ANI.
Maharashtra saw the highest surge in daily coronavirus count on Thursday. For the first time, over 25,000 people tested positive for the novel coronavirus in a day. With 58 fatalities, the death toll jumped to 53,138. Out of 58 deaths, 38 occurred in the last 48 hours and 15 in the last week.
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To prevent coronavirus spread, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday asked divisional commissioners to ensure strict implementation of COVID-19 restrictions.
"In view of the highest number of cases on Thursday since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, the district administration should speed up contact tracing and implementation of restrictions and safety protocols," Thackeray said in a virtual meeting, reported PTI.
The state is in the beginning of second COVID-19 wave, a central team report had said earlier this week.
Meanwhile, Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar on Thursday said that she is considering a night curfew in the city and shifting the crowded markets to new sites in light of the increasing cases.
"Putting cities and districts under lockdown, partial lockdown, or night curfews aims to put a pause on the spread of the virus. Our focus is on tracking, tracing and vaccination," Maharashtra health minister added.
He further assured that there were enough beds available for patients, both in government and private hospitals.
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A complete lockdown was announced in Nagpur from March 15 to March 21 in view of the rising infections. The Latur district administration, meanwhile, imposed a night curfew between 8 pm and 5 am to contain the spread of the virus in the district till March 31.
A total of 36,39,989 people have been vaccinated against COVID-19 in the state till 17 March, the Maharashtra government said. "We want to be aggressive in vaccination. Three lakh doses per day is our target. I will be monitoring this myself," Tope said.
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