COVID-19 positive cases stands at 5,274 in India; 149 dead

New Delhi, Apr 08: The number of active coronavirus cases in India rose to 5,274 on Wednesday, including the 149 patients who have died and 401 who have been treated and discharged.

Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary Union Health Ministry, said that 773 coronavirus cases and 32 deaths have been recorded since Tuesday.

Maharashtra remained the worst affected after reporting more than 1,018 positive cases, Tamil Nadu has 690 cases and Delhi has reported 576 cases.

Meanwhile, there is still no decision on a possible extension to the three-week nationwide lockdown in the light of requests by states like Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra and Karnataka favouring an extension. There is also a strong likelihood of a staggered exit after Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab are also said to be in favour of maintaining the restrictions beyond April 14.

The Union health ministry, however, clarified that there was no decision on extending the nationwide lockdown yet, asking people not to speculate.A decision on the lockdown could be taken by the weekend.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24 announced the lockdown, including a ban on public transport as well as commercial rail and air travel till April 14.