11,514 cases mark highest spike in Maha; daily tests touch new record

nMUMBAI: Maharashtra recorded 11,514 Covid-19 cases, the state’s highest single-day spike in infections, on Thursday, taking its tally to 479,779. The positivity rate, however, remained low – 15.45% – as the state conducted 74,480 tests, highest in 24 hours since the first coronavirus case was reported in Maharashtra on March 9. The overall positivity rate of the state stands at 19.28%, with 2,487,990 tests being conducted so far.

The state, for the third consecutive day, added more than 300 fatalities to its toll, with 316 deaths reported on Thursday. However, of these, 246 were from the last 48 hours, 44 from last week and 26 from the period before last week. Maharashtra’s Covid-19 toll stands at 16,792.

The recovery rate of the state has risen to 65.94% with 10,854 people having recovered on Thursday, taking the tally of recovered patients to 316,375.

Mumbai, meanwhile, recorded 910 fresh cases, taking the city’s tally of infections to 120,150.It also reported 57 fatalities, pushing up the toll to 6,648.

Maharashtra currently has 146,305 active Covid-19 cases, with rural and semi-urban areas of the state witnessing a substantial rise in infections over the past month. State health department officials attribute the increase in cases to easing of curbs and increase in testing.

“The virus has a trend. It starts, then peaks and stabilises. There is an increase in cases, but there is no data that suggests that the situation has gone out of hand. While we are focused on containing the spread with the standard operating procedures that have been laid out, the case fatality rate is not shooting up. Our efforts are to keep that in control. More than 65% of people have recovered so far,” said a senior bureaucrat, who did not wish to be named.