Mumbai cases likely to fall only in May: Maharashtra task force member

In spite of Covid-related restrictions in the city, Mumbai on average is witnessing 10,000 cases per day. Maharashtra’s Covid Task Force member Subhash Salunkhe told ET that the cases in Mumbai and other districts in the city might begin to fall only in May.

Salunkhe and other experts have reached to this conclusion post-Amravati experience. During its peak, Amravati saw about 1,000 cases per day, but since March the cases have been hovering around 280.

“Based on that, we can say that cases in Mumbai will continue for the whole of April and would start coming down by the end of this month or early May,” Salunkhe told ET.


Amravati was one of the worst-affected districts in Maharashtra in February when it recorded close to 1,000 cases per day and one of the few to see a rapid surge in cases. The cases began to abate only in March.

The state government is now contemplating a state-wide lockdown for about two weeks to contain the spread of the virus. The announcement for the same is likely by Thursday.

Maharashtra health officials told ET that Mumbai and other districts could see some kind of restrictions even in May as many countries are witnessing a third wave — almost immediately after the second wave.

Salunkhe said: “Yes, the third wave has almost merged with the second wave in several countries. To prevent this, one needs effective intervention through restrictions and vaccinations. The latter is the key as we need to vaccinate faster before the virus mutates.”