Maharashtra COVID surge shock Koena Mitra, Suchitra; Soni Razdan backs vaccine for actors

India was enjoying a good run in terms of COVID-19 management in the months at the end of  2020 and the beginning of 2021, as daily cases reduced from close to 1 lakh cases in September to even four-digit figures in February. However, an unexpected surge of cases, amid hopes for eradication of the virus with the introduction of the vaccines, has poured water on the plans for now. The leading contributor to the hike has been Maharashtra, which witnessed over 23,000 cases on Wednesday, making even celebrities concerned for a solution to the pandemic.  

Bollywood celebrities on COVID-19 surge in Maharashtra

Suchitra Krishnamoorthi questioned the continuation of cricket matches, political rallies and religious gatherings and asked why they were exempt from the safety regulations. The Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa actor asked if the virus could not be transmitted at such events. Speaking specifically about Maharashtra, she stated that the state needed a vaccine drive on a ‘war footing basis.’

Maharashtra recorded 23,179 cases in 24 hours on Wednesday. Though Koena Mitra tweeted a lesser number, she called the rise in COVID-19 ‘insane’ and asked what was happening in the state. 

Previously, industrialist Anand Mahindra had suggested an ‘emergency permission’ for Maharashtra to vaccinate everyone. Actor-columnist Suhel Seth also suggested that anyone willing to the vaccine should be allowed to do so, and not just health workers and senior citizens, as being done so. Responding to the post, Soni Razdan highlighted that even actors were at a high risk of contracting the disease and that many had already been diagnosed with it.

The Raazi actor was surprised that no one felt actors should also be vaccinated and stressed on it being a ‘profession.’ She highlighted that actors were not someone who could not wear the masks all the times during the shooting.

Maharashtra’s 84 deaths reported on Wednesday took the toll to 53,080. The total number of cases now stand at 23,70,507, and active cases were 1,52,760. 

Meanwhile, on Thursday, India reported 35,871 cases in the span of 24 hours. The jump was the highest in over 100 days.  

With 172 daily new fatalities, the death toll has now risen to  1,59,216. The total number of cases stand at 1,14,74,60 with 52,52,364 active cases.