India, on Wednesday, reached an unprecedented level of positive COVID-19 patients as it has crossed the 50,000 mark. The deadly virus continues to spread rapidly among the citizens including many healthcare workers and security personnel.
The spread of the infectious disease has been rapidly pushed due to urban hotspots such as states like Maharashtra, Gujrat and West Bengal. The authorities have flagged these states as high fatalities prevail in these regions.
Maharashtra reported a new record of 1,233 new cases taking the total record to 16,758. The state also reported 34 deaths. It alone accounts for 36.6% of the total 1,777 fatalities in India till this day. “The situation in Maharashtra is certainly a matter of concern right now as 34 out of 36 districts are affected by Covid-19 Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Nagpur, Nashik, Aurangabad, Solapur, among the 34 districts are a cause of concern for us,” the minister said at a news.
Gujarat reported 380 new cases and 28 more deaths so far, taking its total case count to 6,625 and the number of fatalities to 396. This included 291 new cases and 25 more deaths in Ahmedabad alone. The civic authorities have ordered to shut down all shops except those selling milk and medicines for a week.
West Bengal accounted for 79 deaths so far, reported only four new deaths on Wednesday, toll estimate being 144. Madhya Pradesh reported nine deaths and Rajasthan recorded four more deaths on Wednesday.
UP has recorded 118 new cases, taking the state tally to 2,998. Four more deaths have been recorded hence the state toll has reached 60. Despite the high number of cases, UP has reported to discharge more patients than admitting new ones. 143 patients were sent home in the last 24 hours after their full recovery.
The COVID-19 cases escalated quickly in Tamil Nadu as it recorded the biggest single-day jump of 771 cases. Majority of them were linked to the hot spot of a market in Koyambedu. The total infections in the state stood at 4,829.
In Tripura, reports suggest, 22 more BSF jawans tested positive, the tally has now reached 64.
Kerala has reported more than 500 affirmative cases till now but it did not report a single new case on Wednesday. The authorities have also said that majority of their patients have recovered hence, the number of active patients stand at 30.
Meanwhile, in Delhi, the government ordered the release of over 4,000 Tablighi jamaat members. They have completed the required time in quarantine and will be sent back to their home states. Most of them had come from the states of Tamil Nadu and Telangana.
Experts fear that the cases in India will increase as the government has planned to bring back a large number of stranded citizens on Friday. 64 flights will bring 15,000 citizens home from over 12 countries. The navy has already sent two warships to Maldives to bring back Indians.
While the experts praise India’s efforts of controlling the transmission of the fatal virus, they say the next few weeks will be crucial to flatten the curve.
