Maharashtra govt must take COVID-19 situation seriously, apprise citizens, says Ajit Pawar

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Maharashtra Leader of Opposition Ajit Pawar on Friday said the state government should look into the COVID-19 situation immediately, as cases have been on the rise and apprise citizens.

As per the state health department, Maharashtra had on Thursday recorded 803 fresh coronavirus cases and three fatalities that raised the tally of infections to 81,47,673, which includes 1,48,454 deaths.

"During the recently concluded Assembly sessions, we had asked the state government about measures it was taking and the line of action it had decided to enable people's representatives to go back to their constituencies and work on dealing with the COVID-19 situation by taking officials into confidence," Pawar told reporters in Pune.

During the Maha Vikas Aghadi rule, the Uddhav Thackeray-led government had been united in its fight against coronavirus.

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Expressing concern, Pawar said that while the number of infections was increasing by the day, no one seemed to be taking the situation seriously.

"If the situation is serious, the government should give instructions that people working in government offices must use masks mandatorily and people who visit these offices should also wear masks. However, no such order has been issued as yet," the NCP leader said.

He further urged the government to take the COVID-19 situation seriously and inform people about the same by holding a press conference so that they know the ground reality and are able to take necessary precautions.

On Chief Minister Ekanth Shinde's upcoming visit to Ayodhya, Pawar said the chief minister can go to Ayodhya if he wishes to and the deputy chief minister and health minister can handle the COVID-19 situation.