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Himachal sees 700% rise in Covid infections in January; Kangra worst-hit
Himachal Pradesh has witnessed a nearly 700% rise in the fresh Covid infections in just the first week of the New Year. With 878 fresh cases, Kangra is again the worst-hit district
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Even as an upward trend is being witnessed in Covid-19 infection across the country, Himachal Pradesh has witnessed a nearly 700% rise in the fresh infections in just the first week of the New Year.
Till January 8, the hill state had recorded 2,730 fresh cases compared to only 354 cases in the last week of December 2021.
New infections are on the rise since December 28, however, the daily infection crossed 100-mark on January 2 which has now crossed over 700 per day.
A record of 728 cases was recorded on Saturday, January 8. Even, the one-week tally has surpassed the cumulative tally of December 2021 when 1,662 cases were reported in an entire month.
The sudden spike also prompted the state government to bring back the curbs. The gatherings, indoor and outdoor have been capped while the schools have been shut till January 26. Cinemas, stadiums and gyms have been closed indefinitely.
Positivity rate goes past 5%
“Variants of the Covid-19 are spreading fast world over and India and Himachal is not bereft of it. We are continuously reviewing the situation,” said Hemraj Bairwa, mission director, National Health Mission. He said curbs have been brought back while some more restrictions will be imposed as per need.
Bairwa said that due to the latest spurt the positivity rate has jumped to 5.5% in January from just 1% in December.
The gravity of the situation can be gauged from the fact that active cases have shot up by around 700% since January 28, when the state had only 346 active cases. By January 8 the number had reached 2,811.
Meanwhile, given the forecast of further rise in the infections and in active cases by the medical experts, chief minister Jai Ram Thakur has directed the state health officials to be on guards to tackle the situation. He has sought to ensure adequate number of beds, oxygen, PPE kits and medicines in the hospitals and also strengthen the home-isolation mechanism.
Kangra, the most populous district in the state, is again the worst-hit district having reported 878 fresh cases, over a six-fold increase. In December last week 129 cases were reported from the district the month’s tally was 453. Daily infections in the district have crossed 200-mark.
Kanga chief medical officer Dr GD Gupta said recently Covid cases have surged at an alarming speed in Kangra. He said the active cases which were 80 in December have reached 925. There has been a six-fold increase in the active cases while the positivity rate has jumped from 1% to over 15%.
This is time for self-discipline and acting sensibly. People should strictly follow Covid norms and eligible people should get vaccinated, he said.
Don’t ignore ILI symptoms, quarantine yourself immediately and get tested at the earliest, added Dr Gupta. The district also has the highest 925 active cases. Other districts with high active cases are Solan (362) and Hamirpur (305). Four districts have active cases less than 200 while rest below 100. Lahaul-Spiti has only 10 active cases.
The third wave of the Covid-19 has also taken many VIPs in its grip. The latest to be infected by the deadly virus is BJP organising secretary Pavan Rana. Additional chief secretary Prabodh Saxena has also caught the infection.
He had attended the cabinet meeting on January 5 and all the ministers may undergo testing. Earlier, SDM, Manali, had tested positive. Kangra deputy commissioner who got infected in December has recovered.
