News Analysis India

Tag: Maharashtra lockdown

  • COVID crisis: Maharashtra brings back lockdown like curbs; shuts down educational institutions

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Tightening restrictions in the face of surging COVID-19 cases, the Maharashtra Government on Saturday prohibited movement in public in groups of five or more from 5 in the morning to 11 at night, effective January 10 midnight.

    Further, no movement will be allowed in public from 11 pm to 5 am except for essential services, a government circular said.

    The state had reported more than 40,000 new cases of coronavirus on Friday.

    Schools and colleges will be closed till February 15 except for activities required to be undertaken for class 10 and 12 students and administrative activities of teachers, it said.

    No visitors will be allowed at government offices except with written permission of office heads.

    Online interaction facility will be provided for people through video conference.

    Government offices should opt for work from home and working hours should be staggered if work from office is required, the circular said.

    Private offices have also been asked to rationalize the number of employees coming to work by allowing work from home and staggering working hours.

    Attendance at marriages and social, religious, cultural or political gatherings will be capped at 50.

    At funerals, not more than 20 persons can remain present.

    Swimming pools, gyms, spas, wellness centres, beauty salons will remain closed.

    Hair cutting salons will function at 50 percent capacity.

    Sporting events would be deferred, except national and international-level competitions already scheduled.

    But such events would take place without spectators and with creation of bio- bubble for players and officials.

    RT-PCR and Rapid Antigen Tests will be mandatory for players and officials every third day of the event or tournament, the circular said.

    Entertainment parks, zoos, museums, forts and other ticketed places for public will be closed.

    Shopping malls and market complexes can operate at 50 per cent capacity, and information about the present number of visitors should be displayed on noticeboard.

    Only fully vaccinated people will be allowed to enter malls and shopping complexes, and these establishments will be closed after 10pm.

    Restaurants and eateries will also function at 50 per cent capacity and present number of visitors will be displayed on the notice board.

    They too can remain open only till 10 pm.

    Cinema theatres and drama halls will also function at 50 percent capacity.

    Public transport will be allowed only for fully vaccinated persons.

    Competitive exams, where hall tickets have been issued, will be held as per the central government guidelines.

    All other future exams will be conducted only after receiving permission from the State Disaster Management Authority, the circular said.

    Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday said his government wanted to prevent health services from coming under excessive pressure.

    Thackeray said he had directed the authorities to take strict action against those who violate Covid appropriate behaviour (CAB) norms.

    He appealed to people not to become “corona messengers” and endanger lives of others.

    “We have been fighting the virus for the last two years and have successfully dealt with two waves of the pandemic by taking cautious steps.

    The virus, in a different avatar, has been spreading rapidly,” the CM said.

    “Instead of discussing whether it is mild or serious, we need to take steps to stop it, else our health infrastructure will be under tremendous pressure,” he said.

    He did not wish to impose a complete lockdown, Thackeray said.

    “We don’t want to harm livelihood but want to prevent crowding. When restrictions were eased last year, some people continued to follow health protocols but others were complacent and irresponsible. This will not be tolerated,” the CM said.

    There was enough medical infrastructure in place, but if doctors and nurses fell sick, “where do we bring human resources from,” he asked.

    Referring to the closure of educational institutions, he said steps are being taken to ensure that education is not hampered, and online education will continue.

    Thackeray also appealed to people to get vaccinated at the earliest.

    Curbs can be made stricter in districts where vaccination is low, he warned.

    The graduate and post-graduate examinations of the premier Maharashtra University of Health Sciences in Nashik were postponed due to the rise in COVID-19 cases, especially those caused by the new Omicron variant, an official said on Saturday.

    He said the post graduate exam, which was to start on January 17, will now begin from February 14, while the graduate exam, that was scheduled to commence from January 31 will now do so from February 28.

    The decision was taken in a meeting held on Friday, which was attended by state medical education minister Amit Deshmukh, MUHS Vice Chancellor Lieutenant General Dr Madhuri Kanitkar (retired) and medical education department commissioner Virendra Singh, among others, the official added.

    Meanwhile, as many as 68 Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) employees working out of its Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) office here have contracted coronavirus infection, an official of the central agency said on Saturday.

    The CBI had asked the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation to test 235 persons working at the BKC office, he said.

    “From this lot of 235 personnel, which includes officials, 68 have tested positive. The infected ones have been asked to home quarantine,” he added.

    Despite a rise in COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra, the need for hospitalization and oxygen support was low, state health minister Rajesh Tope said in Jalna on Saturday.

    He said the state task force and health department had given their assessment of the COVID-19 situation to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray who will decide on the extent of restrictions etc.

    He added that 41,000 cases were detected on Friday in the state, though there was no addition to the Omicron tally.

    “Those having cough, fever etc, including children, must get themselves tested. Senior citizens with comorbidities and frontline health staff must go for the precautionary vaccine dose, the drive for which will begin on January 10,” the minister said.

  • Religious places reopen in Maharashtra; CM visits Mumbai temple on first day of Navratri

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: After remaining closed for nearly six months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, religious places reopened in Maharashtra on Thursday, with devotees seen visiting various temples and mosques in Mumbai and other places since early morning.

    Chief Minister Uddhav Thackarey along with his wife Rashmi Thackeray and two sons Aaditya and Tejas visited the Mumba Devi temple here around 8.45 am and offered prayer to the Goddess, as the reopening of religious places coincided with the beginning of the nine-day Navratri festival.

    Since early morning, devotees were seen visiting various temples in the state capital Mumbai while adhering to the mask and social distancing norms.

    Mosques in the city also witnessed a steady stream of the faithful since morning.

    The CM and his family members, all wearing masks and following the social distancing rule, were there in the Mumba Devi temple premises for about half-an-hour.

    Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar was also present there along with the CM.

    After offering prayers, the chief minister extended greetings to citizens on the occasion of the Navratri festival.

    “It is the responsibility of all to observe health protocols at the places of worship in view of the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.

    The CM said he prayed to Goddess Mumba Devi to eradicate the coronavirus completely.

    He said the trustees and priests of all places of worship should ensure that devotees follow discipline while offering prayers, and the shrine premises are cleaned and sanitised frequently and proper social distancing is followed.

    “We can set an example in this regard,” he said.

    He also praised places of worship like the famous Siddhivinayak temple here for using QR code and other technologies to facilitate online darshan for devotees.

    After the first coronavirus wave waned, places of religious worship were reopened in Maharashtra in November last year, but they were closed again for people after the second wave started in the state in March 2021.

    For long, the opposition BJP had been demanding reopening of temples and other places of worship in Maharashtra.

    The party staged protests in August in several cities of Maharashtra in support of its demand.

    The Maharashtra government last month announced reopening of all religious places from October 7 in the state with COVID-19 protocols, a move that comes amid indication that the second wave of the pandemic is ebbing.

    Besides Mumbai, religious places in other parts of the state also reopened on Thursday.

    In neighbouring Thane city, BJP MLC Niranjan Davkhare visited the famous Ghantali Devi temple and offered prayers to the Goddess.

    A number of devotees, mostly women, dressed in traditional attire, were seen visiting the temple.

    The Kopineshwar temple in the main market area of Thane city and the Lord Shiva temple in Ambernath town also reopened their doors for devotees early in the morning.

    The temple managements provided sanitisers to visitors and ensured that social distancing was followed.

    In adjoining Palghar district, the reopening of the Mahalaxmi temple at Dahanu and the Vajreshwari temple in Vasai were marked by musical performances arranged by temple managements.

    Flower vendors and those selling other items for prayers expressed happiness at the reopening of religious places.

    Sapna Mali, whose family earned a living by selling flowers outside a Ganesh temple in Thane city, said, “It is good that the temples have reopened, otherwise it would have been difficult for us to survive in these times.”

    Last month, while announcing the reopening of religious places, Chief Minister Thackeray had urged people not to drop guard and continue COVID-19-appropriate behaviour in view of a possible third wave of the pandemic.

    The government had issued standard operating procedures (SOPs) for devotees and officials managing places of worship to ensure strict implement of coronavirus-related protocols and curb spread of the infection.

    These strict measures include non-distribution of ‘prasad’ (offerings), no sprinkling of holy water, no touching of statues, idols or holy books and staggering the number of visitors to maintain social distancing, a government order earlier said.

    Face mask or covering of the face is mandatory while visiting religious places, it said, adding the minimum distance between two persons should be six feet.

    The state government advised senior citizens, pregnant women and children below 10 years of age to remain at home.

    The management of shrines should provide separate entry and exit points for devotees, if possible, to avoid crowding, said the order.

    People should avoid physical contact while greeting each other, it added.

    The Mumbai civic body issued an order last week capping the number of visitors to places of worship to 50 per cent of total capacity.

  • COVID: After 18 months, schools reopen across Maharashtra for physical classes

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Schools across Maharashtra resumed physical sessions for classes 5 to 12 on Monday after being shut for over 18 months in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Until now, schools were conducting physical classes only in those areas which were reporting relatively fewer COVID-19 cases.

    Last month, Maharashtra’s School Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad had announced that physical classes will resume in schools across the state and the government also issued standard operating procedures (SOPs) for it.

    On Monday morning, the minister in a tweet said, “Wishing all parents and students the very best as schools reopen across the state today. We hope you enjoy your first day back in a safe atmosphere.”

    According to the Maharashtra government, physical sessions have started for classes 5 to 12 in rural areas and for classes 8 to 12 in urban areas of the state.

    But, the physical classes have not yet been resumed for classes 1 to 4 in rural areas and for classes 1 to 7 in urban areas.

    The Maharashtra education department conducted a meeting on Sunday to take stock of the situation before resuming physical classes in schools.

    “For a smooth transition to physical classes, effective coordination with the health department, local administration will have to be maintained. We are committed to providing a conducive atmosphere to students, many among whom will be returning to class after a year and a half,” Gaikwad had tweeted after the meeting.

    As per SOPs issued by the state government for the reopening of schools, it is not mandatory for students to attend physical classes.

    If they want to attend, they will have to submit consent letters from their parents.

    Gaikwad last month said that as per a survey conducted by the school education department, more than 70 per cent parents favoured reopening of schools.

    In Maharashtra, physical classes in schools were stopped in March 2020, after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The state government in July this year allowed schools to restart physical classes in the rural areas where COVID-19 prevalence was negligible.

    The decision mainly benefited the state’s Vidarbha region, but schools in major cities like Mumbai and Pune remained closed.

    The latest decision was taken after consulting health officials as well as the state government’s COVID-19 task force, Gaikwad earlier said.

  • Amid emergence of new variant, eight Maharashtra districts show rise in Covid numbers

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI:  In Maharashtra, eight districts show high Covid-19 positivity rates, more than the state average of 2.58%. According to Maharashtra’s health department, Pune is still critical and reporting the highest positivity percentage as well as active cases.

    Pune district’s weekly positivity rate is 6.15%, while it is 4.85% in Ahmednagar, 4.02% in Sangli and 3.97% in Satara. Osamanabad has reported 3.56%, Sindhudurg 3.18%, Solapur 2.60% and Ratnagiri 2.59%. All eight are above the state average of 2.58%.

    There are 51,238 active cases in the state. Pune has the most of them with 13,515, which is around 26.38%. Thane, Satara and Ahmednagar are also high on active cases.

    The state health department report also reveals that in the last 10 days, Pune has reported the highest number of positive cases — 9,506 out of 44,366 cases across the state.

    There were 7,014 fresh cases in Ahmednagar, 5,390 in Satara, 4,692 in Solapur and 4,285 in Sangli in the same period.

    In Mumbai also, positive cases are increasing, from an average of 300-350 per day to 416 on September 1. A total of 32 buildings with more than five positive cases have been sealed by the local civic body to contain the outbreak. 

    Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray warned that the state is the second after Kerala in terms of positive cases in India and therefore, they cannot ignore health experts who are warning of a third wave.

    He said the Central government had also asked them to take precautions and not allow big gatherings during festivals like Dahi Handi and Ganesh Chaturthi.

    “We request people not to fall in the trap of the Opposition who are interested doing politics. For us, lives of the people is of utmost importance,” he said.

    Meanwhile, a new variant of coronavirus – C.1.2 – which has been detected in South Africa and some other countries, could be more infectious than earlier strains and may evade vaccines, said an infectious diseases consultant who is also a member of the Maharashtra COVID-19 task force on Thursday.

    Dr Vasant Nagvekar, an infectious diseases consultant with a Mumbai hospital and a member of the government task force on COVID-19, said the new variant also has mutation rate that is nearly “twice as fast” as the rate of other variants.

    It requires more detailed study as we know very little about it, he said.

    “A new SARS-CoV-2 variant, C.1.2, just identified in South Africa and other countries with concerns that it could be more infectious and evade vaccines. What sets this variant apart is the speed at which it is mutating. This variant is changing and mutating at a rapid rate which are seen in many variants of concern and variants of interest,” he said in a statement.

    SARS-CoV-2 is the virus which causes COVID-19.

    Masking, vaccination and avoiding major gatherings are precautions that need to be taken, Nagvekar said.

    If one experienced symptoms associated with coronavirus, then that person should immediately get tested and opt for early treatment based on diagnostic result, he said.

    Nagvekar, when asked about the number of different mutations, said there are COVID-19 variants of concern – Alpha, Deta, Gamma and Delta – and variants of interest – Ela, Lita, Kappa, Lamda and Mu.

    He explained that variants of concern meant they showcased genetic changes that are predicted or known to affect virus characteristics like transmissibility, disease severity, immune escape, diagnostic or therapeutic escape.

    Asked about details of the new variant, Nagvekar said experts are yet to ascertain what could be the symptoms, but they claim they may be similar to COVID-19 symptoms.

    Coronavirus symptoms include fever or chills, cough, runny nose, shortness of breath or difficulty in breathing, among others.

    The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Thursday said only the second dose of COVID-19 vaccines will be given to eligible beneficiaries at civic and government-run inoculation centres in the metropolis on September 4.

    In a release, the civic body said in the wake of the rising number of COVID-19 cases in Mumbai, a special inoculation session has been organised for people due for their second dose.

    “Therefore, the first dose of COVID-19 vaccines winotll be given to anyone (at public centres) on Saturday (Sep 4) ,” the BMC stated.

    Over the last two days, Mumbai has reported more than 400 daily cases.

    Since January 16, when the nationwide inoculation drive was launched, as many as 95,62,080 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in Mumbai.

    Of these, 69,63,200 beneficiaries have been given the first dose, while 25,98,880 people have received the second shot too.

    Explaining the reason behind a special session for the second dose, the civic body said the number of beneficiaries who have been fully vaccinated is low as compared to those who have received the first shot.

    Currently, the number of daily COVID-19 cases is showing an upward trend and experts have predicted a third wave of the pandemic, according to the BMC.

    In this backdrop, it is necessary to complete the vaccination of adult citizens and beneficiaries waiting for their second dose should take maximum advantage of the session, it added.

    (With PTI Inputs)

  • COVID-19: Maharashtra has seven high-burden districts; less than 10 active cases in six districts

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Just seven districts, including Pune, account for bulk of the COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra, while half a dozen other districts have less than ten active cases currently.

    This information was revealed in a presentation made before Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and his cabinet colleagues on Wednesday.

    Maharashtra, the worst coronavirus-affected state in the country, has 36 districts.

    There is no active COVID-19 case in Nandurbar district as of now, while Dhule, Washim, Yavatmal, Bhandara, Wardha and Gondia districts have less than ten coronavirus patients under treatment, said an official.

    Districts such as Parbhani, Hingoli, Nanded, Amravati, Akola, Buldana, Chandrapur and Gadchiroli have less than 100 active cases of the infection.

    Seven districts – Satara, Sangli, Ahmednagar, Pune, Osmanabad, Solapur and Sindhudurg – have higher number of COVID-19 cases than others and account for most of the infections in the state, he said.

    The state’s weekly COVID-19 positivity rate was 2.44 per cent, the official said.

    In the last few days, the coronavirus growth rate in Ratnagiri and Kolhapur districts was showing worrying trend, but now it has come down even below 2.44 per cent, he said.

    Commenting on vaccination, the official said, “As many as 5.07 crore people have received at least the first dose of the vaccine. More than 50 per cent of the population above 45 has been inoculated with at least one dose. The vaccination percentage for the 18-44 age group was 25 per cent, while 1.33 crore people in Maharashtra have been fully vaccinated so far, which is a record at national level,” he said.

    The state saw vaccination of 9.64 lakh people on August 14, which was a record in itself, he added.

    As part of the state government’s efforts to revive and support economic activities, several relaxations have been granted, but with COVID-19 protocols, he said.

  • Coronavirus: 5,132 new cases, 158 deaths in Maharashtra; Mumbai faces vaccine shortage again

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra reported 5,132 new coronavirus positive cases and 158 deaths on Wednesday, pushing the caseload to 64,06,345 and toll to 1,35,413, a health department official said.

    The state witnessed a rise in the number of new infections and fatalities as compared to Tuesday, when it had reported 4,408 new cases and 116 fatalities.

    Nandurbar district in north Maharashtra does not have a single active COVID-19 case on the third day in a row.

    The official said that 8,196 patients recuperated during the day, taking the cumulative recovery count to 62,09,364.

    There are 58,069 active cases in the state at present.

    The case recovery rate now stands at 96.83 per cent, while the fatality rate is 2.11 per cent.

    As 1,97,697 tests were conducted across the state in the last 24 hours, the overall test count climbed to 5,14,89,080, the official said.

    Notably, Nandurbar, Akola, Nagpur, Wardha , Bhandara and Gondia districts along with Dhule, Jalgaon, Malegaon, Bhiwandi Nizampur, Akola, Parbhani, and Amaravati municipal corporations did not report any new coronavirus infections during the day.

    The official said that Solapur district reported the highest number of 756 new infections, followed by Pune with 701 new cases, while Ahmednagar district tops the list of fatalities with 30 deaths in the last 24 hours.

    Among the eight regions of Maharashtra, Pune reported the highest number of 2,551 new COVID-19 cases, followed by 861 cases from Kolhapur region.

    Nashik region reported 788 new cases, Mumbai 686, Latur 177, Aurangabad 35, Akola 20, and Nagpur region 14, the official said.

    According to the official, of the 158 deaths reported during the day, the highest number of 47 fatalities were reported from Pune region, followed by 38 from Mumbai region.

    Nashik region recorded 34 deaths, while Kolhapur and Latur regions reported 32 and seven deaths respectively.

    Significantly, Akola, Aurangabad and Nagpur regions did not report any fresh fatality.

    The official said that Mumbai city witnessed 285 new cases and five deaths, while Pune city reported 296 new cases and one fresh fatality.

    Among 58,069 active patients in the state, Pune district accounts for 12,904, the official said.

    Among the 62,09,364 recovered patients in the state, the highest count of 10,74,553 is from Pune district.

    The coronavirus figures of Maharashtra are as follows: Total cases 64,06,345, new cases 5,132 death toll 1,35,413, recoveries 62,09,364, active cases 58,069, total number of tests 5,14,89,080.

    The COVID-19 vaccination drive will remain suspended at the civic and state government-run centres in Mumbai on August 19 and 20 due to shortage of vaccine doses, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said on Wednesday.

    This is for the third consecutive week in August that the civic authority has suspended the drive due to shortage of vaccine doses.

    Earlier, the civic body had halted inoculation on August 12, 13 and 4.

    The BMC in a statement said the vaccination drive will resume on August 21, as a fresh stock of vaccines is expected to arrive on Thursday night and will be distributed to all civic and government-run centres the next day.

    Appealing to citizens to cooperate with the administration, the civic body said people of Mumbai are constantly informed about vaccination, depending on the availability of vaccine stock.

  • COVID-19: Maharashtra allows under-18 people to visit malls with age proof; state reports ten more Delta Plus variant cases

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government on Monday decided to allow those below 18 years of age who are not vaccinated against COVID-19 to visit shopping malls upon displaying the valid age proof.

    The state government has already allowed people who are fully vaccinated to visit shopping malls which can remain open till 10 pm on all days.

    A government order (GO) issued on Monday under “break the chain” guidelines said since vaccination for the population below the age of 18 has not yet started, they need to show documents of their age proof like the Aadhaar card, PAN card issued by the Income Tax department, valid school or college identity card with mention of the date of birth at the entry point of malls.

    All shopping malls are allowed to function till 10 pm on all days provided the customers/citizens visiting the malls and all employees, including managers and housekeeping staff, possess the final vaccination certificate of receiving two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and that 14 days must have elapsed after the second dose, the GO said.

    All customers need to show their final vaccination certificate with a photo identity proof at the entry point of malls, it said.

    Further relaxing the COVID-19 curbs, the Maharashtra government on Wednesday decided to allow malls, restaurants, spas and gymnasiums to remain open till 10 pm with a 50 per cent capacity on the condition that the entire staff at these establishments has taken both doses of COVID-19 vaccines.

    Shops were also allowed to operate till 10 pm.

    Meanwhile, ten more cases of the Delta plus variant of coronavirus, considered highly infectious, have been detected in Maharashtra, taking their overall tally to 76, the state health department said on Monday.

    Five patients infected with the variant have died so far in the state.

    The health department, in a statement here said, six of the 10 new cases of the Delta plus variant were found in Kolhapur, followed by three in Ratnagiri and one in Sindhudurg.

    All the 10 patients have completely recovered, it said.

    According to the statement, so far the highest patients of Delta plus – at 15 – have been found in Ratnagiri district followed by Jalgaon, Mumbai and Kolhapur districts at 13, 11 and seven cases, respectively.

    Thane and Pune districts have recorded six cases each, Palghar and Raigad districts three each, Nanded, Gondia and Sindhudurg two each and Chandrapur, Akola, Sangli, Nandurbar, Aurangabad and Beed has one case each.

    Of the 76 patients of the Delta plus variant, five – two from Ratnagiri and one each from Mumbai, Beed and Raigad – have died, according to the statement.

    The deceased – three females and two males – were above the age of 65 years and suffering from high-risk illnesses, it said.

    The department stated, “80 per cent of the samples sent for genome sequencing had tested positive for the Delta plus variant (of coronavirus).”

    Of the 76 patients, 39 were in the 19 to 45 age group, 19 in the 46 to 60 age bracket, nine were over 60 years and another nine were under 18, according to the statement.

    Of the total patients – 39 females and 37 males – 10 had taken both the doses of coronavirus vaccines, while 12 others had received only the first shot, according to the department.

    Of the vaccinate patients, two had taken Covaxin and the remaining Covishield, it said.

    Of the total Delta plus patients, 71 have already recovered and 37 of them were without any symptoms or showed mild symptoms, the statement said.

    The state reported 4,145 new coronavirus cases and 100 fresh fatalities on Monday, taking the infection tally to 63,96,805 and the death toll to 1,35,139, a state health department official said.

    Notably, Nandurbar district in North Maharashtra does not have a single active case of coronavirus currently, making it free of the infection for now.

    The official said 5,811 patients were discharged from hospitals across the state in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative number of recovered cases to 61,95,744.

    Maharashtra now has 62,452 active cases.

    The state has 3,53,129 people in home quarantine and 2,530 in institutional quarantine, according to the official.

    Maharashtra’s COVID-19 recovery rate now stands at 96.86 per cent, while the fatality rate is 2.11 per cent, he said.

    The cumulative number of tests conducted in the state climbed to 5,11,11,895, of which 1,52,165 tests were done in the last 24 hours, the official said.

    Notably, Dhule, Nandurbar, Jalna, Parbhani, Akola and Wardha districts and Dhule, Jalgaon, Bhiwandi Nizampur, Parbhani, Nanded, Amaravati, and Chandrapur municipal corporations did not report any new coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours, he said.

    The official said Ahmednagar district reported the highest new infections at 660 followed by Solapur at 584, while Aurangabad topped the list of fatalities with 36 deaths in the last 24 hours.

    Among the eight regions of Maharashtra, the Pune region reported the highest new cases at 1,799 followed by 600 cases in the Kolhapur region.

    Among the other regions, Nashik reported 769 cases, Mumbai 465, Latur 169, Akola 21, while Aurangabad and Nagpur regions registered 11 infections each, the official said.

    Out of the 100 fatalities, the highest 46 were reported from the Aurangabad region, followed by 19 from the Kolhapur region, he said.

    Significantly, Akola and Nagpur regions did not report any fresh fatality, while the Pune region registered 17 fatalities, Mumbai 11, Nashik five and the Latur region two.

    The official said Mumbai witnessed 195 new COVID-19 cases and three deaths, while Pune city reported 148 infections, but no fresh death.

    Among the 62,452 active cases in the state, Pune district has the highest at 14,610, he said.

    The official said among the 61,95,744 recovered patients across the state, the highest – 10,71,040 – were from Pune district.

    Coronavirus figures for Maharashtra are as follows: Total cases 63,96,805; new cases 4,145; total deaths 1,35,139; total recoveries 61,95,744; active cases 62,452; total tests 5,11,11,895.

  • Maharashtra schools reopening: Decision will be taken by local officials amid outbreak of Delta Plus variant

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: It is up to local officials to decide, taking into consideration the COVID-19 situation in an area, whether physical classes should resume at schools, Maharashtra School Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad said on Thursday.

    Asked about the confusion about the government’s announcement to resume more physical classes at schools from August 17, Gaikwad said the decision-making has been decentralized.

    The opposition BJP, on the other hand, claimed there was no coordination in the government on the issue.

    The state task force on COVID-19 at a meeting on Wednesday night opposed the decision to resume more classes at schools.

    Gaikwad was not present at the meeting.

    The minister told reporters on Thursday that municipal commissioners in urban areas and collectors and Zilla Parishad CEOs in rural areas have been given discretion to take decision.

    “There is no compulsion (on the state government’s part) to reopen schools. The COVID task force members were not aware of our Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). There will be a meeting again. Our (education department’s) secretary is studying the SOP of the task force,” Gaikwad said.

    BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis said there was no coordination between the task force, education minister Gaikwad and Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on the issue, creating confusion.

    All stake-holders should sit together and arrive at a consensus, the former chief minister said.

    Health authorities in Maharashtra’s Gondia district have started tracing close contacts of two women who were found infected with the Delta plus variant of coronavirus, considered highly infectious, an official said on Thursday.

    As many as 105 swab samples collected from the district were sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune in the last week of June for genome sequencing and two of them tested positive for the Delta plus variant, according to Dr Nitin Kapse, District Health Officer.

    Their report was received on Wednesday, he said.

    Though both the patients, women aged 19 and 45, have recovered from the infection, the district health department has started a survey at their native places, looking for their travel history and close contacts, he said.

    The women hail from Sadak Arjuni and Salekasa tehsils of the district located in the Vidarbha region in eastern Maharashtra.

    “The health department is looking for their close contacts so that they can undergo RT-PCR tests and also looking at their travel history,” he said.

    Kapse said there is no need for people to panic but they should strictly adhere to COVID-19 protocols to stay away from the infection and curb its spread.

    The state reported 6,388 new coronavirus cases and 208 fresh fatalities on Thursday, taking the infection tally to 63,75,390 and the death toll to 1,34,572, a health department official said.

    Notably, the daily coronavirus infections in the state have gone over 6,000 after a gap of four days, while for the first time since July 31, the fatalities have crossed the 200-mark.

    The state witnessed an increase in COVID-19 cases and fatalities as compared to Wednesday, when it had reported 5,560 infections and 163 deaths.

    The official said 8,390 patients were discharged from hospitals across the state in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative number of recovered cases to 61,75,010.

    Maharashtra now has 62,351 active cases, he said.

    The state has 3,98,397 people in home quarantine and 2,507 in institutional quarantine, according to the official.

    Maharashtra’s COVID-19 recovery rate now stands at 96.86 per cent, while the fatality rate is 2.11 per cent, he said.

    The cumulative number of tests conducted in the state climbed to 5,03,26,812, of which 2,10,674 were done in the last 24 hours, the official said.

    Notably, Dhule, Nandurbar, Wardha and Jalgaon districts, along with Malegaon and Bhiwandi Nizampur municipal corporations did not report any new coronavirus infections, he said.

    Among districts, Satara reported the highest new infections at 919.

    The official said among the eight regions of Maharashtra, the Pune region reported the highest 2,828 new COVID-19 cases followed by 1,472 cases in the Kolhapur region.

    Among the other regions, Nashik reported 918 cases, Mumbai 728, Latur 327, Aurangabad 73, Akola 22 and the Nagpur region recorded 20 new cases, the official said.

    Among the 208 new fatalities, the highest at 81 were reported from the Mumbai region followed by 52 from the Kolhapur region.

    The Aurangabad region did not report any fresh death, while the Pune region recorded 48 fatalities, Nashik 14, Latur 11, while one death each was registered in the Akola and Nagpur regions, said the official.

    He said Mumbai city witnessed 281 new COVID-19 cases and seven deaths, while Pune city reported 313 fresh infections and two fatalities.

    Among 62,351 active cases in the state, Pune district has the highest at 14,423, according to the official.

    He said among the 61,75,010 recovered patients across the state, the highest – 10,67,600 – were are from Pune district.

    Coronavirus figures for Maharashtra are as follows: Total cases 63,75,390; new cases 6,388; total deaths 1,34,572; total recoveries 61,75,010; active cases 62,351; total tests 5,03,26,812.

  • Oxygen requirement will be criterion for imposing lockdown: Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: The daily oxygen requirement for COVID-19 patients will be the deciding factor for imposing lockdown in future, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said on Wednesday.

    If the oxygen requirement reaches 700 metric tons, lockdown will be imposed again, he said in a statement.

    The daily oxygen production capacity in the state is 1,300 metric tons, he said.

    “During the second wave, when the number of COVID-19 cases showed a steep spike, the demand for oxygen was also very high. Some 500 metric tons of oxygen had to be procured from other states. If the demand goes up to 700 metric tons daily, which is the quantity needed for nearly 30,000 patients, the state will be once again brought under lockdown,” Thackeray said.

    The chief minister’s statement came in the wake of the government’s decision to ease restrictions by allowing local train travel in Mumbai for fully vaccinated people, and allowing shops, malls, restaurants, gyms and salons to remain open till 10 pm from August 15.

    The Delta variant of the COVID-19 is spreading fast in other countries like UK and USA, Thackeray said, adding that easing of restrictions is being done very cautiously.

    “We have to be vigilant against the third wave and various variants of the virus,” Thackeray said.

  • Maharashtra: More physical classes to resume from August 17; fully vaccinated to get train passes from Wednesday

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Schools in Maharashtra can start conducting more physical classes from August 17 provided the COVID-19 infection rate in the area is low, an order issued by the state government said on Tuesday.

    The decision to reopen more classes had been announced last week.

    Physical classes for std 5th to 7th will be allowed in rural areas from August 17, an official release said.

    Physical classes for std 8th to 12th are already being held in most rural areas.

    Classes for std 8th to 12th can resume in urban areas, the statement said.

    Notably, the state task force on COVID-19 pandemic has advised against reopening schools offline.

    Dr Shashank Joshi, a member of the task force, had said on Monday that there was evidence that schools and religious places were becoming `super spreaders’ of the viral infection.

    The final decision on whether to permit physical classes will be taken by a committee headed by the respective municipal commissioner in urban areas and district collector in rural areas.

    Other members of the committee will be the ward officer, medical officer and the education officer.

    The area where schools are to be reopened should have a very low COVID-19 prevalence for the last one month, and the district collector should arrange for vaccination of teachers and other school staff against COVID-19, the statement said.

    “To avoid crowding, parents should be barred from entering the school premises. The number of students in a classroom can be around 15-20, seated six feet apart from each other,” it said.

    Priority should be given to the teaching of core subjects, and if a student tests positive for the infection, the school should be closed and sanitized, the statement said.

    The process to issue passes for travel by local trains in the Mumbai region for those who have taken both doses of COVID-19 vaccines will begin at railway stations from Wednesday, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said.

    The passes will be issued after verification of the vaccination status, the BMC said in a release here on Tuesday.

    Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday announced that any person who has completed 14 days after getting the second dose of coronavirus vaccines will be allowed to board suburban trains from August 15.

    The BMC release said those who want to purchase a pass are required to carry a hard copy of COVID-19 vaccination final certificate and a photo ID for verification.

    “Those eligible after verification will be allowed to travel from August 15, 2021 onwards,” the release said, adding a total of 358 help desks will be set up at 53 railway stations falling under the BMC’s jurisdiction.

    Besides, help desks will be set up at 56 suburban stations falling in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (outside BMC limits) by the respective authorities, it said.

    The civic body said the help desks will be operational in two consecutive sessions from 7 am to 11 pm.

    “Citizens can approach the station nearest to their house for verification and should avoid crowding,” it said.

    The BMC warned that strict legal action will be taken if fake vaccination certificates are produced to obtain passes.

    As to making the facility available online, the process of creating an app for it was going on, the BMC said.

    “The process of making this facility available online is underway. But it may take a little more time,” it said.

    The BMC also said that it has appointed nodal officers for smooth implementation of the entire process and necessary training is being given to the staff.

    “The offline process of issuing monthly season passes will continue on all seven days of the week till further orders and therefore people need not rush to the railway stations,” the civic body said.

    If a person does not have even one of the two documents — vaccination certificate and photo ID — she or he will be denied entry at the railway station, it added.

    The civic staff at a help desk will check the validity of the Final Vaccination Certificate (Second Dose) on the CoWin app.

    “Once the verification is completed and both the documents are found to be valid, the certificate and the identification proof will be stamped in the prescribed format,” the BMC said.

    The stamped Covid certificate will have to be presented at the ticket window to get a pass.

    “Strict police action under the Epidemic Control Act / Disaster Management Act Indian Penal Code, will be taken if a citizen tries to produce lake/ bogus Cavid Vaccination Certificate,” it warned.

    Government employees and other essential services staff will continue to be allowed to travel by local trains, irrespective of whether they have been vaccinated.

    Central Railway and Western Railway officials said the number of ticketing windows will be increased.

    WR spokesperson said it has opened 276 windows across the stations between Churchgate and Dahanu, whereas the CR said it will operate 341 ticket windows.

    According to the BMC, so far it has administered 76,56,487 vaccine doses.

    As many as 19,14,771 people have received both doses.

    on Tuesday reported 5,609 coronavirus positive cases and 137 fatalities, including the highest 46 in the Pune region, while 7,568 patients recovered, a state health department official said.

    With the new additions, the tally of infections and the death toll in Maharashtra rose to 63,63,442 and 1,34,201, respectively, the official said.

    The number of recoveries has increased to 61,59,676, leaving the state with 66,123 active cases.

    Compared to Monday, the number of cases went up by 1,104 in Maharashtra while the count of fatalities doubled compared to 68 deaths reported the day before.

    Maharashtra’s case recovery rate now stands at 96.8 per cent and the fatality rate is 2.01 per cent.

    Dhule, Nandurbar, Washim, Wardha, Bhandara and Gondia districts, and Malegaon and Parbhani municipal corporations did not report any new COVID-19 case, the official said.

    At 782, Satara district reported the highest number of new infections in the state in the day.

    Among the eight regions in Maharashtra, the Pune region reported the highest number of 2,330 cases, followed by 1,413 cases in the Kolhapur region.

    Among the other regions, the Mumbai region reported 707 cases, Nashik region 683, Latur region 398, Aurangabad region 33, Akola region 31 and Nagpur region 14, the official said.

    Of the 137 fatalities, the highest number of 46 deaths were reported from the Pune region, followed by 43 in the Kolhapur region.

    Mumbai region reported 19 deaths due to COVID-19, Nashik region 11, Aurangabad region eight, Latur region five, Akola region four and Nagpur region one, according to the official.

    Mumbai city saw 239 COVID-19 cases and five deaths.

    Pune city reported 247 infections and five fatalities.

    Among 66,123 active patients in Maharashtra, the Pune district has the highest number of 13,892 patients.

    The Pune district has the highest number of 10,65,837 recovered cases.

    Dhule district does not have a single active case, the official said.

    With 1,79,402 new tests, the number of samples examined so far in Maharashtra climbed to 4,99,05,096, the official said.

    A total of 4,13,437 people are in home quarantine in Maharashtra while 2,860 others are in institutional quarantine, he said.

    Coronavirus figures in Maharashtra are as follows: Total cases 63,63,442, new cases 5,609, total deaths 1,34,201, fresh deaths 137, total recoveries 61,59,676, active cases 66,123, new tests conducted 1,79,402.