Updated: November 20, 2020 12:10:26 pm
Crematorium workers at Nigambodh Ghat, where the bodies of deceased Covid patients are being cremated. (Express photo: Amit Mehra)
In the midst of the festive season, some major cities in India have become hotspots, with the number of active cases increasing sharply in recent weeks. The big rush in markets and public places during the festive season, rising pollution levels and the consecutive onset of winter are believed to be behind the rise in cities like Delhi, Ahmedabad and Pune. While the Delhi government has raised the fine for not wearing masks in public places to a whopping 2,000 rupees, Ahmedabad has announced a full curfew from Friday night to Monday morning and an indefinite curfew. Monday night onward to combat this spike in cases.
Delhi
Current situation of Covid: The national capital has seen an increase in cases since the beginning of October, with daily cases surpassing the 5,000 mark for the first time on October 28. Delhi registered 7,546 new Covid cases on Thursday, with a positivity rate of 12 percent. The death toll reached 8,041, and 98 deaths were reported. According to the government, only 140 ICU beds with ventilators were empty Thursday night, while 319 ICU beds without ventilators were available. Wednesday, the the city bill had exceeded 5 lakh. The mortality rate based on the last 10 days has been recorded at 1.48%.
Actions taken by the government: With Delhi witnessing a third wave, Interior Minister Amit Shah stepped in for a second time to give instructions on how to combat the Covid situation. The Center announced a series of steps: adding more ICU beds, doubling the number of daily RT-PCR tests, and conducting house-to-house surveys.
Prime Minister Arvind Kejriwal said Thursday that all Private hospitals in the capital would have to reserve 80 percent of their ICU beds. and up to 60 percent of normal beds for coronavirus patients, and postpone non-critical surgeries. This will lead to an increase of 2,644 beds.
Kejriwal also said that the penalty for not wearing masks has been quadrupled, from Rs 500 to Rs 2,000. In a webcast, Kejriwal said that in addition to private hospitals, 663 beds will be added in Delhi government hospitals. The central government has also secured “750 additional beds in the hospitals run by the Center, which means that we will have around 1,413 additional ICU beds in the coming days in Delhi,” he said.
Healthcare Workers Testing for Covid in Delhi.
The Interior Ministry said that since the meeting between Shah and Delhi government officials, more than 28,708 RT-PCR tests have been carried out. The Ministry has maintained a target of 60,000 RT PCR tests per day by the end of November.
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“The 800-bed train cars at the Shakur Basti train station will now be functional with CAPF doctors and paramedics to attend to them,” said a ministry statement. He said that 75 doctors and 251 paramedics from the Central Police Armed Forces have reported for duty. Of these, 50 doctors and 175 paramedics have been deployed to Chhatarpur and Shakur Basti railway station. The Ministry said that 500 isolation beds at the care facility in Chhatarpur will be converted to beds with oxygen facilities by the weekend.
A health worker collects swab samples at the Nizamuddin train station, New Delhi.
Ahmedabad
Current situation of Covid: The city of Ahmedabad has witnessed a steady rise in coronavirus cases since the beginning of this month. From 125 to 130 daily cases a few months ago, the city is now witnessing more than 200 Covid-19 infections in a single day. As of Thursday morning, the city had 2,845 active cases and has seen a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases after Diwali. Of these, most are from the western part of the city. Ahmedabad reported three deaths and 230 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, out of a total of 1,340 cases and seven deaths across Gujarat, bringing the number of cases to more than 46,000.
Government action: Ahmedabad city to be under “full curfew” from Friday night to Monday morning, only stores that sell milk and medicine will remain open and a night curfew will be imposed indefinitely on Monday night thereafter. The decision to impose a night curfew from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. Friday was made at a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and attended by Chief Deputy Minister Nitin Patel and senior AMC officials on Thursday. in the afternoon.
People stock up on groceries ahead of full curfew in Ahmedabad this weekend.
It was also decided to add 1,300 more Covid beds to the existing capacity in the city’s government and private hospitals, bringing the total number of beds for Covid care in the city to 8,800. Government hospitals will receive 900 additional beds, while private ones will receive 400. For additional support services, the 108 ambulance vehicles were also increased from 20 to 40.
The state government also sanctioned 300 doctors and 300 medical students for the city of Ahmedabad on Thursday. For the areas around Ahmedabad such as Sabarmati, Chandkehda and Motera, an additional 100 beds are being reserved for Covid patients at the Gandhinagar Civil Hospital.
Health workers test for Covid in Ahmedabad.
Pune
Current situation of Covid: So far, Pune has reported 3.44 lakh of confirmed cases of coronavirus infections, the third highest for any city, after Delhi and Bengaluru. The city has also recorded more than 8,000 coronavirus-related deaths, the highest after Mumbai and Delhi. The Pune district as of Wednesday afternoon has reported a total of 3.32 lakh cases, of which 9,174 were active cases.
The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is preparing for the second wave of coronavirus infections and has even warned that the number of active cases may exceed 19,500.
Actions taken by the government: the PMC has stated that it has adequate facilities to accommodate the growing number of patients, and anticipates that 40 percent would likely be in home isolation, while 60 percent would be in institutional isolation, of which 45 percent would be in Covid care centers and 15 percent. cent would need oxygen support.
Large crowd seen before the Diwali Festival at the Tulsi Baug market in Pune. (Ashish Kale Express File Photo)
Following its estimates of past infections and trends, the PMC expects around 8,800 patients at Covid care centers, which can accommodate 10,000 patients. Most of these centers in the city are temporarily closed now due to a lack of patients, but the civic administration has said that they will be restarted as required.
The PMC also expects, during the second wave, a demand for 2,934 oxygen beds, including 2,347 oxygen beds and 294 ICU beds, each with and without ventilators. It has claimed to have 3,244 oxygen beds, 446 ICU beds with ventilators, and 401 ICU beds without ventilators, to accommodate Covid-19 patients.
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