MUMBAI: Maharashtra on Saturday reported 120 deaths, including 58 in Mumbai, due to COVID-19, taking the overall number of fatalities to 2,969, state health department said.
The number of coronavirus cases spiked by 2,739 to 82,968, it said.
The recovery rate for Maharashtra, which has the highest caseload in the country, now stands at 45.06 per cent and the fatality rate at 3.57 per cent, an official statement said.
A total of 2,234 patients were discharged in the day, taking the number of the recovered cases to 37,390, it said.
The state now has 42,609 active cases, it said, adding that a total of 5,37,124 samples have been tested so far.
"Of the 120 deaths being recorded, 30 fatalities had occurred in the last two days while the rest (90) during May 3 to June 3," it said.
Of the 90 deaths recorded during the May 3-June 3 period, 53 fatalities were recorded in Mumbai.
Of the 120 deaths recorded on Saturday, 90 were from the MMR (Mumbai Metropolitan Region) area including 58 in Mumbai, it said.
Of the total 82,968 cases in the state, Mumbai now accounts for 47,354 cases and 1,577 deaths.
Currently, 5,46,566 people are placed under home quarantine and 29,098 in institutional quarantine across Maharashtra.
The number of beds available in quarantine institutions is 75,741, as per the statement.
The number of containment zones is 3,603.
Of the total 82,968 cases, bulk of 62,615 cases have been reported from Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) which includes Mumbai city.
MMR has reported 1,993 fatalities, including 1,577 from Mumbai alone, the statement said.
In Malegaon city in Nashik district, the number of cases stood at 782 with 68 deaths, it said.
Pune city has reported 8,049 cases and 372 fatalities so far.
The case tally for Solapur is 1,176 cases with 90 fatalities, it said.
Aurangabad city has reported 1,815 cases and 90 deaths, the Health department said.
COVID tally in Maharashtra is as follows: Positive cases 82,968, recoveries 37,390, deaths 2,969, active cases 42,609, people tested 5,37,124.
The state government also formed a four-member committee to ascertain charges of COVID- 19 tests conducted at authorised private laboratories in the state, state Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Saturday.
According to an official statement, Tope said the rates will be fixed within seven days.
State Health Assurance Society CEO Sudhakar Shinde will head the committee, which will have Joint Director of Directorate of Medical Education and Research Ajay Chandanwale and Grant Government Medical College and Hospital professor Amita Joshi as members and health services director as member secretary, the statement said.
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has allowed 44 government and 36 private laboratories in the state to carry out coronavirus tests.
While the tests are free at government laboratories, the ICMR fixed charges at private laboratories at Rs 4,500.
"The kits required for conducting the tests were being imported then (when charges of tests at private laboratories were fixed by ICMR). Now kits are being manufactured in the country itself and are available. Hence, ICMR has conveyed to negotiate with the (private) laboratories and fix the test rate. The rates will be finalised in seven days," said the statement.
Private laboratories can charge for tests at current rates (fixed for the district in which they are located) till the new ones are finalised, it added.