Former Maharashtra Chief Minister and current Public Works Department (PWD) Minister in the state cabinet Ashok Chavan tested positive for Covid-19 on Sunday. He is currently in his hometown Nanded, under medical observation. Of late, Nanded has been in news for the wrong reasons. At least 115 of the 3,500 pilgrims who returned from the Nanded gurdwara to Punjab had tested positive for coronavirus. In fact, since then, the gurdwara and langar (community kitchen) have been closed. In neighbouring Latur, too, the incidence of coronavirus has been fairly high, given its demographic profile. Chavan is the second minister in the MVA government to test positive. Earlier, in April, Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad had tested positive. He later recovered and was discharged from the hospital.
“I would like to thank the hospital staff, including nurses, ward boys, doctors and other employees, for all that they have done for me and I will be indebted to them all my life,” Awhad had tweeted. Interestingly, the number of containment zones in the state has come down, from 2,345 to 2,283 on Sunday; and 16,913 health teams have surveyed a population of around 66.6 lakh in the state.
