Mumbai: At 13,659 Covid cases, daily count in state at its highest after Oct 7

Mumbai: Covid-19 cases ballooned in Maharashtra, including Mumbai, on Wednesday, inching closer to the pandemic peak witnessed in the September-October period. Maharashtra reported 13,659 cases, the highest in the 154 days since October 7 (14,578).

There is a nearly 40% increase in the daily detections as compared to Tuesday. The state added 54 fatalities. The total caseload went up to 22,52,057 and the total fatalities rose to 52,610.

The BMC registered 1,539 cases in Mumbai, the highest count since October 21, when 1,609 cases were detected. On the eve of the anniversary of the detection of the first case in Mumbai on March 11 last year, the city’s caseload stood at 3.37 lakh and toll at 11,515 deaths.

While some of the private hospitals said their beds were full, the BMC dashboard showed that only 5,145 (38%) of the total 13,529 Covid beds in the city were occupied. Only 30% of the 8,019 oxygen-supported beds were occupied. Of the 1,533 ICU beds available for Covid patients in the city, 789 (51%) are occupied.

The daily positivity rate in the state and city is on the rise. On Wednesday, 14.6% of the 93,219 swabs tested were positive. The percentage of positive swab tests for the city was 7% .

BMC officials said the picture is not as grim as it was last year. The biggest difference between the October and March surges is the toll: while 48 people died due to Covid on October 21, the BMC registered five deaths on Wednesday. The state had reported 355 deaths on October 7.

“Last year it was impossible to get a single bed in the city, but today more than half the ICU beds are vacant,” said Dr Rahul Pandit, a member of the state Covid task force. The consensus is that most cases are asymptomatic or mild enough to be managed at home.

Public health minister Rajesh Tope said people were not following home quarantine rules and infecting others.

Additional municipal commissioner Suresh Kakani said although the numbers have risen sharply, the BMC has not found a single cluster or groups spreading the disease. “It is a very scattered picture in Mumbai. We are taking steps to contain the spread, including telling housing societies to call us up if asymptomatic patients are not observing isolation rules,” he said.

Total discharges in the state neared the 30 lakh mark. Active cases rose to 99,008, of which 10%, or 9,973, were in Mumbai.

Thane city saw a spike in cases as 256 positive cases were registered and two deaths took the toll to 1,344.