Maharashtra logs 1.42 lakh cases between January 1 and June 11, 2025

LARGE NUMBER OF CASES WORRYING AND LINKED TO MULTIPLE FACTORS SUCH AS CLIMATE VARIATIONS, URBAN DENSITY, AIR QUALITY, EXPERTS SAID

- Vicky Pathare

PUNE: Pune has emerged as the worst-affected district in Maharashtra for cases of influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infections (SARI), accounting for over a third of the state's total caseload. However, officials claim that precise reporting is the reason behind the large number of cases.

According to official data from the Integrated Health Information Portal (IHIP) of the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) of the state health department, Maharashtra recorded a total 142,474 cases of ILI and SARI between January 1 and June 11, 2025, with Pune district alone accounting for 54,371 cases, which is approximately 38% of the total cases.

During the same period, the state reported 753 cases of SARI, 597 (79%) of which were reported by Pune district alone, officials said.

Dr Sachin Desai, Pune district health officer, said that the reason behind the large number of cases is the reporting in Pune district. "All cases are regularly updated on the portal, and there is no underreporting of cases. However, no deaths have been reported amongst these infected patients," he said.