Maharashtra reports 26,538 new cases, including 8 deaths

Maharashtra records 26,000 new Covid-19 cases and eight deaths. Total cases rise to 6,757,032 including 141,581 deaths. Omicron infections, meanwhile, rise by 144 to 797. Meanwhile, colleges in Maharashtra (all non agricultural universities, deemed and private universities, technical institutions and affiliated colleges) will remain closed for offline lectures till February 15, Uday Samant, higher and technical education minister, announced on Wednesday. During a Facebook live session, he urged the universities and colleges to take up vaccinations of students on priority.

On the other hand,  with the continuous threat of rising cases of COVID-19 in past few days and detection of Variant of Concern (VoC) ‘Omicron’ suggesting increase in transmissibility, the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai issued fresh guidelines to enhanced surveillance of international travellers arriving at Mumbai International Airport from abroad. Under the latest protocols, all international passengers will have to undergo rapid RT-PCR test on arrival. If negative, passengers will be allowed to leave and stay under 7-day home quarantine. Those found positive to undergo institutional quarantine