NAGPUR, Maharashtra — The number of reported coronavirus cases in Maharashtra crossed 100 on Tuesday, making it the first state in the country to reach the number.
“The total number of Coronavirus cases in Maharashtra has reached 101 now. Three more positive cases were found in Pune and one in Satara district,” Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope tweeted earlier in the day.
Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray has already sealed the borders of all districts in Maharashtra as the government works frantically to control the number of cases in rural areas, where healthcare facilities are limited.
Thackeray didn’t understate the danger in his live-streamed speech on Monday evening.
“If we cannot stop this virus’s spread now, there is a danger that it could wreak havoc in Maharashtra the way it did in some countries around the world. You can’t prevent this virus or stop it by clapping. I am imposing a curfew in the state now as there is no option left. More than five people won’t be allowed to gather in one place. Yesterday we sealed the state border. Today, we are sealing the district borders,” he said.
The state had witnessed its sharpest single-day jump in coronavirus cases on Monday when 23 new cases were reported.
More than 380,000 people around the world have tested positive for the virus, which has killed more than 16,000. Scientists have said that the virus follows an exponential growth pattern, which means that with every passing day, it infects more and more people rapidly.
Like other states, Maharashtra also bears testimony to this. The state only had 52 cases until Friday morning but the tally has almost doubled in just three days after that.
State capital Mumbai and its suburban areas have reported the maximum number of cases—40—followed by Pune district with 31 cases.
Nagpur, Yavatmal, and Kalyan have reported four cases each and Ahmednagar and Thane have reported two cases each until Tuesday morning.
The state has already reported two deaths due to Coronavirus.
The Thackeray government’s decision to seal the district borders was taken in the wake of cases reported from rural districts of western Maharashtra such as Satara and Sangli.