Lockdown will not be re-announced in Maharashtra, said Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Friday even as the state remains the worst hit by the novel Coronavirus infection.

Thackeray, however, appealed to the people to refrain from crowding and follow the instructions given by the government and take necessary precautions.

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“The lockdown has not been reimposed. CM Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray has appealed to the people to refrain from crowding. He has earnestly requested them to follow the Govt’s instructions and take necessary precautions to stay safe and take care.” tweeted the chief minister’s office.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra minister Aaditya Thackeray also tweeted asking people to not believe in rumours about lockdown.

“Please do not give into fake news about lockdown. As of now, Begin Again is in motion. @CMOMaharashtra Uddhav Thackeray ji has appealed to all citizens to ensure social distancing, so as to not get even close to a lockdown. Safety of citizens is and will be the only parameter (sic),” Aaditya tweeted.

Maharashtra has so far recorded 97,648 and 3,590 deaths.

For the second consecutive day, Maharashtra recorded new highs on the COVID dashboard — 152 deaths and 3,607 cases — with the highest 97 fatalities for the second day running in Mumbai.

The state’s death toll of 152 marks an increase of 3 over the previous high of 149 notched on June 10, with the month proving to be a nightmare with 3-digit death figures being notched almost daily.

Maharashtra has been recording 100-plus fatalities and over 2,000 new cases daily for the past 11 days.

However, the state continues to record a stunning recovery rate, standing currently at 47.02 per cent and a mortality rate of 3.07 per cent.

As Mumbai continues to grapple with COVID-19, between 200 and 300 doctors from rural areas of the state will be brought to the city to help cope with the patients’ rush.

Meanwhile, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Thursday suggested conducting a COVID-19 vulnerability mapping of densely populated areas in several districts of Maharashtra for deploying effective containment strategies.

Vardhan held a high-level meeting via video-conferencing with Maharashtra’s Health Minister Rajesh Tope, Medical Education Minister Amit Deshmukh and district magistrates of COVID-19 affected districts in the state.

Dr Harsh Vardhan advised strengthening the system of ICU, ventilators and testing labs in Maharashtra and ensuring their availability to all forthcoming patients.

He also told the state officials that testing labs should ensure prompt delivery of reports of COVID-19 tests to help in timely detection and management of patients.

Meanwhile, Delhi health minister Satyendar Jain also on Friday informed that the lockdown will not be extended in the national capital.

The clarification came in response to a huge buzz on social media that Delhi would go back into lockdown from June 15 till July 31 to check the spiraling COVID-19 cases. Also, the Delhi government has informed that around 5.5 lakh cases are expected in the cpaital by July 31 based on the current doubling rate which is 12-13 days.

It is the third worst-hit state with 34,687 cases and 1,085 deaths.

Delhi and Maharashtra have been witnessing a surge in COVID-19 cases in the past two weeks, brewing speculations that the lockdown might be re-introduced to curb the spread of the infection.