Massive Covid-19 spike in Maharashtra: 23,179 cases in 24 hours; 2,377 in Mumbai | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
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Massive Covid-19 spike in Maharashtra: 23,179 cases in 24 hours; 2,377 in Mumbai

By | Edited by Poulomi Ghosh
Mar 17, 2021 09:38 PM IST

Maharashtra's case positivity rate is 16 per cent while the national rate is 5 per cent. 'This is worrying,' health secretary Rajesh Bhushan said on Wednesday.

Breaking all the records of this year, Maharashtra on Wednesday reported the highest single-day spike of Covid-19 cases as it recorded 23,179 cases in the last 24 hours. Mumbai's daily infection tally too breached the 2,000-mark as the city recorded 2,377 new infections on Wednesday. On Tuesday, the state reported 17,864 new cases and Mumbai’s single-day hike was 1,922. Against Tuesday’s tally, Wednesday’s figures register a sharp spike. The Covid-19 situation in Maharashtra is worrying, the health ministry reiterated in its weekly briefing.

A health worker takes a swab sample of a passenger for coronavirus tests at the CSMT railway station on Wednesday.(PTI)
A health worker takes a swab sample of a passenger for coronavirus tests at the CSMT railway station on Wednesday.(PTI)

While Maharashtra's daily infections have been on the rise for quite some time, the state's toll is also emerging as a cause for fresh concern. On Wednesday, the state reported 84 deaths. On Tuesday, the toll was 84.

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This is the sixth-highest one-day spike of infection in Maharashtra since the outbreak of the pandemic. All the previous highest daily cases were recorded in September. On September 11 last year, the state had reported 24,886 cases; on September 17, the single-day tally was 24,619 cases were added. The third, fourth and fifth-highest figures were reported on September 9 (23,816), September 6 (23,350) and September 10 (23,446), according to news agency PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a video conference with state chief ministers to review the Covid-19 situation of the country. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was present at the meeting where the state's Covid-19 situation came up for a special mention.

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Compared to India’s case positivity rate of 5 per cent (weekly rate of 3 per cent), Maharashtra’s positivity rate of 16 per cent is worrying, health secretary Rajesh Bhushan said. Some districts of Maharashtra have recorded even over 200 per cent spike in the number of cases between March 1 and March 15, the health secretary said.

Maharashtra’s Nanded has recorded a 385 per cent rise in the number of cases, followed by Nandurbar (224%), Beed (219%), Dhule (169%), Jalgaon (147%), Bhandara (140%), Nagpur (122%), Chandrapur (95%), Ahmednagar (72%), Buldhana (65%), Aurangabad (58%) and Akola (20%)

According to city-wise daily infection data, Pune on Wednesday recorded 1,954 cases, Nagpur city 1,951, Buldhana 435, Navi Mumbai 251 and Thane 373. Nagpur district, on the other hand, accounted for 3,370 fresh cases -- in the highest single-day spike in 2021.

Several districts of Maharashtra, including Nagpur, Pune, have imposed restrictions, but no decision has been taken on whether the entire state should bring back lockdown in some form. While Maharashtra ministers have dismissed a statewide lockdown at this moment, PM Modi has advised states and UTs to give district authorities a free hand to create micro-containment zones.

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