Mumbai reports 16,420 Covid infections in over 40% hike from yesterday; More than 46,000 cases in Maharashtra – Hindustan Times

Mumbai on Wednesday reported over a 40% spike in the number of Covid infections compared to yesterday’s tally at a time when Mumbai’s surge was thought to be starting to ebb. Mumbai on Wednesday reported 16,420 fresh infections; on Tuesday, the number was 11,647. On Wednesday, the test positivity rate stands at 24.38%, according to the municipal data. The civic authorities said the positivity rate will see a spike as the Centre has now asked the states and the UTs to test only the symptomatic patients. Since most of the symptomatic patients are likely to be positive, the positivity rate will be increasing. On Wednesday, 67,339 tests were conducted in the municipal area, the data revealed.

Maharashtra on Wednesday reported 46,723 fresh infections. The state also added 86 new Omicron cases, including 21 from Mumbai, 53 from Pune city, six from Pimpri Chinchwad, one from Pune Rural, three from Satara and two from Nashik.

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Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar on Wednesday said the numbers of Covid-19 cases were slowing down in the city and appealed to its citizens to get vaccinated. In a recorded video message issued by the mayor’s office, Pednekar said out of those who died due to Covid-19 so far since February 2021, 94 per cent of people were unvaccinated.

For the last few days starting from January 7, Mumbai’s Covid-19 tally recorded a steady fall. After crossing the 20,000-mark, the city’s 24-hour tally decreased to 19,474 and then it sharply fell to 13,648 cases. On Tuesday, it further fell to 11,647 cases.

The health ministry on Wednesday noted that Maharashtra, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Gujarat and Delhi remain states of concern as not only their daily cases are increasing, but also their positivity rates are on the rise. “In Maharashtra, the case positivity rate surged from 0.87% on December 22 last year to 22.39% today. The weekly cases in the state are at 257,000. In West Bengal, the positivity rate has gone up from 1.52% on December 22 to 32.18% today and cases are increasing rapidly. Similar trends are seen in Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Gujarat,” joint secretary of health ministry Lav Agarwal said.