Mumbai became the first district in the country to reach the milestone of 1 crore Covid-19 vaccination mark. According to data uploaded on the CoWIN portal, Mumbai has administered vaccine doses to 1,00,63,497 people. Out of these, 72,75,134 have received the first dose, while 27,88,363 have got both. In the last 30 days, the highest number of Covid-19 vaccines were administered on August 27 when 1,77,017 people were inoculated. This was followed by 1,63,775 doses on August 21 and 1,53,881 doses on August 23, according to the CoWIN portal. Mumbai, meanwhile, reported 422 new Covid-19 cases on Friday, the third straight day of more than 400 infections, and three fresh fatalities. The BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said with these additions, the overall tally rose to 7,45,434, while the death toll jumped to 15,987. On September 1 and 2, the city had reported 416 and 441 Covid-19 cases, respectively. Mumbai has been witnessing a steady rise in Covid-19 cases since recording 190 infections on August 16, the lowest daily count since April 2020. As the daily infections dipped, the case doubling rate improved to more than 2,000 days.
Meanwhile, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government is reportedly planning to reimpose restrictions across the state to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus. If reports are to be believed, the state government might think of a night curfew or revising the cap on the maximum number of people gathering for religious or cultural events in the wake of upcoming festivals. Speaking to a leading portal, Aslam Shaikh, Mumbai’s guardian minister asserted that restrictions could return by the end of this month if cases rose. “According to the task force, cases may increase by September-end and it may necessitate the resumption of restrictions. If people follow Covid-19 appropriate behaviour rigorously, there would not be a rise in the number of cases,” Hindustan Times quoted Shaikh as saying. With the possibility of India hurtling towards a COVID-19 “third wave”, the Maharashtra government has cautioned that the state could witness around 60 lakh cases in such a situation. Health Minister Rajesh Tope said that while around 20 lakh were affected in the first wave followed by 40 lakh in the second, the dreaded next wave may lead to over 60 lakh cases. “Of these, nearly 12 per cent would require oxygen support during treatment… We are trying to achieve 100 per cent vaccination as soon as possible,” he said.