Mumbai, March 27 (TIWN) In the highest incidence of COVID-19 positive cases in the country so far, Maharashtra's count shot up by 31 in the past 24 hours to stand at 156 now, even as a worried government wrote to the army to be prepared for 'medical assistance' if required, officials said here on Friday.

 Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar announced that the government has written to the army to render assistance for any medical emergency, if required.  In a related development, Mumbai's Saifee Hospital Director Vernon Desa said that a senior doctor was found Covid-19 positive during a CT Scan at the hospital and was to an isolation ward in Hinduja Hospital where he passed away.    "All containment and surveillance measures have been implemented to ensure the safety of our staff, patients and visitors. Saifee Hospital reiterates that it is fully operational," Desa said amid speculation that the hospital was isolated by the authorities. 

The state health authorities, terming the case as "suspected", said the deceased was an 85-year old doctor suffering from severe diabetes and had a pacemaker in his heart.  Recently two of his close family members had travelled to the UK. Further details are being gathered, the officials said.  In one of the fastest overnight increase in the number of Covid-19 positive cases in the state, the figures mounted from 125 to 156, including 12 members of a single family in Sangli, besides new cases in Mumbai, Pune, Navi Mumbai, Palghar, Nagpur, Kolhapur, Gondia, etc.  In Mumbai, nine persons, including three women, tested positive including.

A woman who had a travel history to the US reportedly infected three others. All the four, including a male, are admitted to Bhabha Hospital in Kurla suburb.