COVID-19: Ex-Maharashtra CM Ashok Chavan tests positive

Maharashtra Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Ashok Chavan has tested positive for COVID-19. He is the second minister in the Maharashtra government to catch the infection after Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad.

Maharashtra’s former chief minister and current PWD minister Ashok Chavan on Sunday tested positive for coronavirus. This is the second case in Maharashtra government with a senior NCP leader earlier contracting the virus in April.

Earlier, a senior NCP leader had been infected and had gone into self-quarantine after some aides and security personnel were found to be Covid-19 positive. A local report stated that the minister was shifted to a private hospital after he started having trouble breathing.

In the neighbouring state of Gujarat, Congress MLA Imran Khedawala had tested positive for Covid-19 last month, following which chief minister Vijay Rupani went into self-quarantine.

A senior Congress corporator and former leader of opposition in the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), Badruddin Shaikh, 67, had succumbed to the virus after being on ventilator for more than a week. Shaikh had been hospitalised for the past 11 days.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra has recorded 3,041 Covid-19 cases in 24 hours, the highest daily spike, taking the state tally to 50,231. With 58 deaths due to the Pandemic reported during the day, the death toll in the state rose to 1635, the official said. This was the eighth consecutive day when the state reported more than 2,000 new Coronavirus cases, he said.