Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 1 (ANI): The Maharashtra government might make it mandatory for people to wear face masks if COVID cases continue to see a rise, the state Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Sunday.

Mumbai Apr 20 PTI Following are the top stories from the Western Region at 1700 HRS BOM17 GJ-MODI-LD AYUSH India to introduce AYUSH Mark for traditional medicine products AYUSH visa PM Modi Gandhinagar Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said that to promote the traditional medicine industry India will soon launch AYUSH mark which will give authenticity to quality AYUSH products made in the country BOM14 GJ-WHO-LD TEDROS-MEDICINE Govt support investments needed to back innovation in traditional medicine WHO chief Gandhinagar World Health Organisation Director General Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus on Wednesday said long-term strategic investments along with government support are crucial to fostering innovation in the field of traditional medicine BOM16 MH-VIRUS-GOVT-VIGIL COVID-19 situation in Maha under control no need to panic Health minister Mumbai In the wake of the Centres advice to monitor and take action to control any emerging spread of coronavirus Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Wednesday said the COVID-19 situation in the state is under control and there is no need to panic BOM1 MP-KHARGONE-CURFEW RELAXATION Days after riots curfew relaxed for 6 hrs at stretch for first time in Khargone BhopalKhargone For the first time in the last 11 days the curfew in Madhya Pradeshs riot-hit Khargone city was relaxed for six hours in one go on Wednesday morning officials said BOM13 MP-KHARGONE VIOLENCE-SHOOTER Man who fired bullet at Khargone SP during riots identified Home minister Bhopal Police have identified the man who had fired a bullet at Khargone SP Siddharth Choudhary leaving him injured on foot when communal clashes erupted on Ram Navami on April 10 and he will be nabbed soon state Home Minister Narottam Mishra said on Wednesday BOM11 MH-MAURITIUS PM CONVOY-ARREST Two drunk men try to drive car into Mauritius PMs convoy in Mumbai arrested Mumbai Two men have been arrested by Mumbai Police for trying to drive their car into the security convoy of visiting Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth in Mumbai in an inebriated condition police said on Wednesday BOM19 DEF-SUBMARINE-LD LAUNCH INS Vagsheer the last of six submarines under Project 75 launched Mumbai The Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders here on Wednesday launched INS Vagsheer the last of the six submarines under Project 75 BOM15 MH-LOUDSPEAKERS-SENA-CENTRE Frame national policy on loudspeakers implement it in Guj Delhi first Shiv Sena Mumbai Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Wednesday demanded that the Union government come out with a national policy on the use of loudspeakers and implement it in BJP-ruled states first BOM18 MP-DROWNING-GIRLS MP Four girls from Sadhvi Ritambharas school drown in canal in Khandwa district Khandwa MP Four girls studying at a residential ashram school run by religious leader Sadhvi Ritambhara drowned in a canal in Madhya Pradeshs Khandwa district on Wednesday police said PTI RSY RSY

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], April 7 (ANI): Amid mounting concerns over the new 'XE' variant of COVID and a day after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation reported its first case in Mumbai, Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope on Thursday said that state health department has not received any confirmation about the variant and thus cannot confirm it.

Mumbai Mar 31 PTI The Maharashtra governments decision to lift all coronavirus-related restrictions including the mask mandate from April 2 was supported by experts on Thursday but with a caveat that vulnerable groups must continue to take precaution State health minister Rajesh Tope earlier in the day announced that all restrictions will be lifted from Saturday and wearing mask will not be compulsory Dr Anurag Agrawal Director of the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology Delhi said there was no point in wearing masks outdoors now when the infection rate is low It is a good time to do away with masks Dr Agrawal told PTI He however added that wearing masks indoors should still be practiced especially by the vulnerable population The Delhi Disaster Management Authority DDMA has also announced that there will be no fine for not wearing masks in public places in the national capital Dr Raman Gangakhedekar former head scientist of the Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases Division at the Indian Council of Medical Research said I will not say that this is an improper decision to make masks voluntary Dr Gangakhedekar who was the face of the ICMR when the first wave of coronavirus hit the country in 2020 said currently the rate of infection is very low and the decision has been taken in that context He too stressed that masks are still necessary for people whose immunity is low This group comprises senior citizens people with comorbidities and those who have not taken both the doses of coronavirus vaccine he said Dr Dileep Mavlankar Director of the Ahemdabad-based Public Health Foundation of India said the time is right to withdraw the mask mandate as infection rate is low and people have developed immunity due to infections and vaccination But people with symptoms must continue to wear masks he cautioned Dr Trupti Gilada Infectious Diseases Specialist Masina Hospital said the vaccination status of Maharashtra is high with over 90 per cent of the population having COVID-19 antibodies either due to previous infection or immunisation There have been no repercussions in the form of rising cases over the last few weeks despite festivities opening up of all public spaces weddings and elections We will continue to see a few cases here and there most of which will be mild Gilada said This is exactly what it means for a disease to become endemic like other diseases like influenza she said It was just about time to return to normalcy and removing compulsory masking is the last leg in that direction a step that has been well calculated and deliberated upon she said But Dr Harish Chafle Senior Consultant - Pulmonology and Critical Care at Global Hospitals in Parel Mumbai had a different take Mumbai was and will be the hotspot of COVID-19 simply because it hosts a large number of people from different cities and countries he said Despite the fact that wearing a mask was always mandatory not many followed the regulation strictly This was the situation when rules were absolutely compulsory he pointed out Now imagine what would happen if the government decides to completely lift the rules There will be chaos among people he said With overcrowded local trains and other modes of transportation going mask-free in Mumbai so soon will be a bad decision especially when we havent achieved 100 per cent vaccination he saidAs many as 1225 new coronavirus cases were reported in the country during the day The active case tally in the country dipped to 14307 The countrys daily positivity rate stood at 020 per cent PTI PR KRK KRK

Mumbai Mar 31 PTI After more than two years all pandemic-related restrictions including the mandatory wearing of masks will be lifted in Maharashtra from April 2 the Maharashtra government announced on Thursday Gudhi Padwa the Marathi New Year falls on April 2 this year The decision to lift all the restrictions was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray Health Minister Rajesh Tope told reporters here From Gudhi Padwa all COVID-19 related restrictions under the Epidemic Diseases Act and Disaster Management Act will be withdrawn Tope said adding that wearing masks would be voluntary In a separate statement chief minister Thackeray cautioned that though the restrictions are going to be lifted it is advisable to maintain social distancing wear mask and take anti-coronavirus vaccines Tope told reporters that the US UK and many countries in Europe have lifted restrictions related to mandatory masks In Maharashtra it has been made voluntary he said To a question whether the state government was taking a risk by lifting the mask mandate the health minister said The chief minister and others cabinet colleagues have consulted the State Task Force on COVID-19 and the health department before taking this decision Notably on Wednesday Tope had said that looking at the rise in coronavirus cases in many countries it would not be right to take the risk of doing away with the mask mandate in Maharashtra The state government has already eased restrictions on movement and gathering as new cases started declining after the third wave driven by the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV2 abated by the end of January With the lifting of norms Gudhi Padwa processions can take place without any restrictions this year Tope said According to the health ministry data India has recorded a total of 42489004 coronavirus cases so far of which Maharashtra a state with a high urban density saw 7725120 the highest in the country After Maharashtra West Bengal too announced the withdrawal of COVID-19 related restrictions on Thursday PTI PR KRK KRK

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], March 31 (ANI): The Maharashtra Government on Thursday announced that all COVID-19 related regulations including the wearing of masks in public places will be withdrawn from Saturday.

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], March 31 (ANI): Amid a surge in the COVID-19 cases in Europe, China and other countries, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Wednesday stressed on the need to be alert and said that the COVID appropriate behaviour needs to be followed.

Mumbai Mar 30 PTI Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Wednesday said looking at the rise in coronavirus cases in many countries it would not be right to take the risk of doing away with the face mask mandate Talking to reporters Tope said the state earlier had 46000 active COVID-19 cases and the number has now come down to 960 Currently the COVID-19 positivity rate is 04 per cent Maharashtra on Tuesday recorded 103 fresh coronavirus cases while no new death linked to the infection was registered as per the state health department Asked about relaxing the mask rule Tope said looking at the fourth wave in other countries it is not right to take the take the risk of removing that restriction For now we have not decided to put an end to the mask mandate he added The minister said many restrictions imposed earlier to contain the spread of coronavirus have been considerably eased in the state The remaining restrictions -- on travel entry in malls and compulsory two-dose vaccination -- have been kept in place to increase the inoculation rate he said There are different demands to relax restrictions All these demands will be placed before the chief minister and after talking to the task force a decision will be taken on the remaining restrictions Tope said He also said that Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray will take a decision on allowing shobha yatras on the occasion of Gudhi Padwa the first day of the Marathi New Year on April 2 PTI PR GK GK

Mumbai Mar 25 PTI The Maharashtra government has decided to give cash prizes to ASHA workers who excel in their work of taking state-run welfare schemes to the intended beneficiaries health minister Rajesh Tope said in the Legislative Council on Friday Responding to a question Tope said the best performing ASHA accredited social health activist at the state level will get Rs 1 lakh while second and third prizes are Rs 75000 and Rs 50000 respectively The best performing ASHA worker at the district level will get Rs 50000 while second best will get Rs 30000 he said adding that dues worth Rs 180 crore of ASHA workers will be cleared soon ASHA workers generally receive Rs 11000 in tribal areas and Rs 10000 in non-tribal areas Their wages will be increased by Rs 500 per month from July Tope said PTI ND BNM BNM

Mumbai Mar 19 PTI The AIMIM was responsible for the defeat of several SP candidates in Uttar Pradesh which paved the way for the BJP to win polls and the Asaduddin Owaisi-led party must prove its real intentions through actions Maharashtra NCP chief Jayant Patil said on Saturday He also said that his party colleague and health minister Rajesh Tope met AIMIM Aurangabad Lok Sabha MP Imtiaz Jaleel to offer condolences over the death of a close relative adding that politics cannot be discussed in such meetings In Uttar Pradesh the AIMIM was responsible for the defeat of many Samajwadi Party candidates The AIMIM should prove it can be considered a like-minded party and should give up its provocative language Patil said He was responding to Jaleels statement that the AIMIM was ready for alliance with Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi MVA which will become a comfortable car from the three-wheeled autorickshaw To a query on Union minister and BJP MP Raosaheb Danve claiming that 25 MLAs from the ruling MVA were ready to switch sides as and when polls draw close Patil said even BJP MLAs are happy as funds for developmental works were being provided by the state government while the MLA fund had been hiked by Rs 1 crore There is no question of MVA MLAs switching sides If anyone breaks away he will not be seen in the legislature again as people will teach them a lesson The BJP says 25 MLAs were planning to boycott the Assemblys budget session but it is not easy to resign from the House and win again the NCP minister said Earlier in the day Tope said that Jaleel should speak to senior NCP leaders if AIMIM wants to ally I just listened to him the state health minister said referring to his visit to Jaleels residence on Friday night to condole the death of the AIMIM MPs mother when he spoke about the alliance If AIMIM wants to talk about alliance they should talk to our senior leaders They can talk to Jayant Patil Ajit Pawar or Sharad Pawar The decision of our senior leaders will be accepted by all Tope said He Jaleel told me that AIMIM will stand behind any party that takes care of minorities I just listened to him he added PTI MR AW BNM NSK NSK