Mumbai, June 1: The tally of coronavirus cases in Maharashtra crossed the 70,000-mark on Monday. Over the past 24 hours, the State Health Department recorded a surge of 2,361 new cases and 76 deaths. The corresponding period also saw over 700 patients being discharged after recovery.

The state's overall count of cases jumped to 70,013, which includes 37,534 active cases. Out of the remainder, 2,362 succumbed to death so far, whereas, more than 30,000 patients recovered from the lethal disease. The cure rate is expected to further improve in the next few days, said State Health Minister Rajesh Tope. Lockdown 5.0: Maharashtra Issues 'Mission Begin Again' Guidelines, Markets to Open From June 5, Religious Places, Malls, Restaurants to Remain Closed.

"The current count of COVID19 patients in the state of Maharashtra is 70,013. Today, 2,361 new patients have been identified as positive. Also, 779 new patients have been cured today. In total, 30,108 patients are cured and discharged from the hospitals. Total number of active patients in the state is 37,534," Tope said.

Update by ANI

Maharashtra's COVID19 case count rises to 70,013 with

76 deaths & 2361 new cases reported today; total death toll 2362: State Health Department pic.twitter.com/JYKHtPbuoi

— ANI (@ANI) June 1, 2020

Maharashtra, the worst-affected state in India, accounts for over 35 percent of the total cases reported in India so far. The nationwide tally on Monday climbed above the 1.90 lakh-mark, with the number of deaths accelerating to 5,394.

Even as the mortality rate is lower in India, the number of cases has listed the country amongst the seven-worst affected in the world. The six nations whose toll of infections are higher than India are: United States, Brazil, Russia, UK, Spain and Italy. In the past week, India surged ahead of Turkey and Iran.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 01, 2020 08:21 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).