Maharashtra PWD minister Ashok Chavan recovers from COVID-19

Mumbai: Maharashtra Public Works Department Minister Ashok Chavan, who had tested positive for COVID-19 in May, was on Thursday discharged from a hospital after fully recovering from the disease.

The senior Congress leader was detected with COVID-19 on May 24 at his native place Nanded. Albeit asymptomatic, the former Maharashtra CM was shifted to a private hospital in Mumbai on May 25.

The MLA from Bhokar constituency in Nanded district will stay at home for further quarantine in accordance with the treatment protocols.

Ashok Chavan was the second Cabinet minister in the Maha Vikas Aghadi government after Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad found to be infected by COVID-19 in April.

After spending some time in home quarantine, Jitendra Awhad was shifted to a hospital for treatment. He was again kept in isolation at his house after his discharge. Jitendra Awhad resumed his ministerial responsibilities in May.

Maharashtra had on Wednesday recorded a new high of 122 coronavirus deaths, taking the toll to 2,587, and 2,560 new positive cases. The toll included 49 deaths in Mumbai alone. Besides that, there were 19 casualties in Pune, 16 in Aurangabad, 10 each in Solapur and Thane, four in Dhule, two each in Jalgaon, Akola, and Kolhapur, and one each in Nandurbar, Palghar, Ahmednagar, Jalna and Osmanabad.

Meanwhile, an official said today that at least 30 police personnel have died due to COVID-19 in Maharashtra so far.

"Till now, over 2,500 state police personnel have tested positive for the coronavirus and 30 of them, including an officer, have died," said the official.

At present, there are as many as 71,912 beds available for quarantine in Maharashtra.

The containment zones in Maharashtra reduced from 3,730 to 3,661 yesterday.