Covid cases continue to rise, Maharashtra tally surges by 66,191
Maharashtra on Sunday reported 66,191 fresh infections, taking its tally to 4,295,027, and 832 deaths
Maharashtra on Sunday reported 66,191 fresh infections, taking its tally to 4,295,027, and 832 deaths.
Of the 832 deaths, 360 occurred in the past 24 hours, and 244 in the past week, said the state health department.
Nagpur’s rural areas reported the highest toll on Sunday, with 69 deaths, followed by Pune district, which comprises Pune city, its rural areas and Pimpri-Chinchwad, with 69 deaths. Solapur district reported 62 deaths.
Health experts attribute the rise in deaths to late arrivals at the hospital. However, they maintain that the case fatality rate of the state is in control.
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Dr Subhash Salunkhe, former director general of health services in the state and advisor to the state on the Covid-19, said with sheer number of infections, a large chunk of them will land up in hospitals. “Roughly 10% of the cases usually are clinical cases. In that, there are late arrivals which make it difficult for doctors to save lives. There could be some stray cases of deaths due to oxygen shortage, but it is not the main factor.”
Dr Shashank Joshi, state Covid task force member, said the sheer load on the healthcare infrastructure could hinder providing treatment to all, which could result in deaths. “The deaths, in absolute numbers have gone up, but compared to last year, our case fatality rate is lower. When you see the healthcare infrastructure clobbered, due to lack of ability to provide healthcare, deaths tend to go up,” he said.
Mumbai, meanwhile, continued to see a dip in daily cases, with 5,498 fresh cases on Sunday. Over the past three days, the city saw a steady decline in cases 7,367 (April 22), 7,199 (April 23), and 5,867 (April 24). It also reported 64 deaths, pushing death toll to 12,790.
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