MUMBAI: Maharashtra recorded 2,940 new coronavirus patients on Friday, the highest one-day spike so far, taking the overall tally in the state to 44,582, health officials said.
As per the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, 1,751 new cases were found in the state capital Mumbai.
With 63 COVID-19 patients dying, 27 of them in Mumbai, the death toll due to the pandemic in the state reached 1,517.
On the other hand, 857 patients recovered and were sent home taking the total number of persons discharged from hospitals to 12,583, state officials said.
Out of 63 deaths, 27 were reported from Mumbai, nine from Pune, eight from Jalgaon, five from Solapur, three from Vasai-Virar, three from Aurangabad city, two from Satara and one each from Malegaon, Thane, Kalyan-Dombivali, Ulhasnagar, Panvel, Nagpur.
In the overall figures so far, Mumbai alone accounts for 27,251 cases and 909 deaths.
The worst-hit Mumbai Metropolitan Region which comprises Mumbai and surrounding satellite towns, has reported 34,107 positive cases and 1,027 deaths so far.
There are 1,949 containment zones in the state.
4,69,276 people are in home quarantine and 28,430 in institutional quarantine.
Coronavirus figures for Maharashtra: Total cases: 44,582, new cases 2,940, deaths 1,517, active cases 30,482, discharged 12,583 and samples tested 3,32,777.
On the other hand, the Bombay High Court on Friday directed the Union government to file an affidavit by May 27 clarifying whether it will impose a cap on the price of N95 masks.
A bench of Chief justice Dipankar Datta and Justice SS Shinde also permitted the Association of Medical Consultants, a private city-based body, to intervene in the issue.
The bench was hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed by Sucheta Dalal and Anjali Damania claiming such cap on pricing is required to curb black marketing of masks during the novel coronavirus outbreak.
On the previous hearing on May 19, the petitioners' counsel, senior advocate Mihir Desai, told the court there already existed a shortage of N95 masks for frontline healthcare workers and, therefore, it was imperative that hoarding or black marketing of such masks be prevented.
The Maharashtra government had, however, told the HC at the time that it had already written to the Centre seeking that a maximum ceiling be fixed for the sale price of N95 masks.
On Friday, the Centre's counsel Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh sought more time to respond to the plea.
While granting the Centre such time, the bench also allowed an intervention application filed by the Association of Medical Consultants that had told HC that the petitioners' grievance seeking a maximum price limit on the sale of such masks was a valid one.
"Having regard to the nature of controversy that has been projected before us, we are of the considered opinion that the opinion of medical consultants might be beneficial for due administration of justice," the bench said while allowing the intervention application.
As per the PIL, though N95 masks have been declared an essential commodity under Essential Commodities Act, hoarding and profiteering from their sale by black marketeers continues in the state.
Therefore, it was imperative government authorities ensured fair pricing of such masks, the plea says.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, meanwhile on Friday, asked officials to check if cinema and television shooting can begin in Mumbai's Film City while adhering to all norms in place for the novel coronavirus outbreak.
He gave the directives after meeting representatives of the Indian Broadcasters Foundation through video conferencing.
The foundation should submit an action plan on how they propose to commence film shootings in non-red zones and the government would take a decision accordingly, Thackeray said.