2127 new COVID-19 cases & 76 deaths reported in Maharashtra; recovery rate jumps over 25%

With 2,127 novel coronavirus cases being reported in Maharashtra on Tuesday, May 19, the state's COVID-19 tally soared to 37,136. A record number of 1202 patients were discharged from various hospitals across the state in the day taking the number of recovered to 9,639. This implies that Maharashtra's COVID-19 recovery rate has jumped over 25%. There are 26,164 active cases in the state currently. 76 casualties- 43 from Mumbai, 15 from Thane, 6 from Pune, 3 from Akola, two each from Navi Mumbai, Buldhana, Nagpur, and one each from Aurangabad, Dhule and Nashik. 58 of the deceased had high-risk co-morbidities such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, etc. So far, 1,325 persons in Maharashtra have passed away due to COVID-19.

A total of 2,93,998 laboratory samples have been collected so far. There are 1765 active containment zones in the state presently. Surveillance of 63.29 lakh population was undertaken by 15,178 surveillance squads. While 3,86,192 individuals are in home quarantine, 21,150 others have been admitted to institutional quarantine centres. 

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Maharashtra government to fill 17,000 positions in the Health Department

Speaking to the media earlier in the day, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope conceded that there was a shortage of beds for COVID-19 treatment initially, but stressed that 15,000 beds for different categories of novel coronavirus patients were available now. He hinted at the possibility of taking control of 80% of beds in all private hospitals in the state to ensure that COVID-19 patients can be treated at a lesser expense. Tope added that the state government would fill 17,000 vacancies for specialist doctors, nurses, and other medical staff in the Health Department. Additionally, the Maharashtra Health Minister revealed that 15,000 tests were being conducted in the state daily. He also pointed out that the death rate in Maharashtra had reduced to 3.2%. 

Read: 10 CAPF Companies Deployed In Maharashtra To Maintain Law & Order Amid Covid Lockdown

Revised guidelines 

The Maharashtra government announced the revised guidelines for the fourth phase of the lockdown in the state on Tuesday. This order shall come into effect from May 22 and shall remain effective till May 31. Basically, the area under the Red zone includes all Municipal Corporations of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region and the Municipal Corporations of Pune, Solapur, Aurangabad, Malegaon, Nashik, Dhule, Jalgaon, Akola, and Amravati. The remaining area of the state has been declared as non-Red zones. While only essential activities shall be permitted in containment zones, major relaxations have been given in the non-Red zones. 

Read: Coronavirus Live Updates: Cases Cross 1 Lakh As Many States Ease Lockdown Restrictions