Mumbai: Maharashtra, the worst-hit state by the COVID is currently placed under lockdown-style restrictions till May 15. These restrictions were first enforced from April 14 to May 1 banning movement of people, closure of non-essential establishmente and more. On April 22, an updated series of restrictions were chalked out by the state government on inter-city and inter-district travel, office attendance, and weddings.

Now with 6 days to end the lockdown style restrictions, people are waiting for the new set of rules. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Saturday said that various options are being under consideration by the government which will be finalised next week.

“We are recording 50,000-60,000 cases on daily basis. These figures are not coming down but are stable. We have different options such as extending the lockdown restrictions or to continue with restrictions only in those areas where the cases are increasing,” said Tope.

While talking to media persons he said that in 12 of the total 36 districts, the cases of novel virus are on decline, of which is a positive thing in the battle against the pandemic.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday spoke with Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray about the ongoing scenario of the pandemic in the state. According to a statement by the chief minister's office (CMO), PM Modi praised Maharashtra's efforts in battling the second wave of the pandemic.

Thackeray, meanwhile, informed PM Modi about the steps taken by the Maharashtra government in view of the potential third wave of the outbreak. "Thackeray also requested for more supply of oxygen to Maharashtra," the CMO statement said.

"The Prime Minister and the Centre have been guiding us in this battle since the beginning and it has been proven beneficial. We are thankful to the Centre for accepting some of our suggestions and demands," the statement added.

Exactly 14 months after Maharashtra got its first two COVID-19 cases (March 9), Maharashtra"s overall case tally on Saturday jumped pads the 5 million-mark while deaths shot past the 75,000-level, according to the health department

Compared to 898 fatalities reported on Friday, the state's dearhs went down to 864 on Saturday, taking the state's overall death tally to 75,277, the worst in the country.

The state on Saturday reported 53,605 new cases, much lower than the record high of 68,631 cases recorded on April 18, taking the state's overall tally past the 50 lakh-mark to 50,53,336.

On the brighter side, 82,266 fully cured patients returned home on Saturday, the highest in a single day this month, taking the total number of recoveries in the state to 43,47,592. Maharashtra's recovery rate also increased to 86.03 per cent.