Maharashtra: Coronavirus cases zoom to 49

The total number of coronavirus cases touched 49 in Maharashtra on Thursday afternoon with two more persons testing positive, Health Minister Rajesh Tope announced.

They include a 51-year-old man in Ahmednagar with a travel history to Dubai and one woman in in Mumbai with a travel history to UK.

He added that the state has banned all flights from 12 countries besides taking extreme precautions for flights from all other nations at the three international airports in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur since the past over a month.

The other two afflicted are a 49-year-old from Ulhasnagar town in Thane who had travelled to Dubai, and a 22-year-old from Mumbai who had visited the United Kingdom.

They were in isolation since the past few days and their test reports came positive on Thursday, officials said.

They are currently undergoing treatment at isolation wards in Mumbai as the state government and the city civic administration grapples with the mega challenge of not allowing people to crowd together to keep the virus at bay.

On Tuesday, COVID-19 claimed it's first victim in the state when a 63-year-old man with a history of travel to Dubai, passed away in Mumbai's Kasturba Hospital.

His wife and son who also tested positive are currently under treatment in the same hospital. IANS