Patient count in Gzb reaches 23; health dept orders PPE and test kits

The increase in the number of Covid-19 positive cases in Ghaziabad has led the health department to order for more personal protective equipment (PPE) as well as

The increase in the number of Covid-19 positive cases in Ghaziabad has led the health department to order for more personal protective equipment (PPE) as well as testing kits. The officials said that they may soon run out of the stock as the number of Covid-19 cases so far has reached 23 till Sunday evening.

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“At present, we have about 350 PPE kits, while the daily usage is about 35-50 of such kits. Therefore, we have placed an intermediate order for procuring 300-400 of these to meet the present requirement. Another order of 5,000 has also been placed. We are also running short of testing kits. Presently, there are 150 kits available. Our daily usage is about 100-150 kits per day. We have placed an order of ₹1 lakh for the testing kits,” said Dr NK Gupta, chief medical officer (CMO).

“The orders have been placed as more people are being admitted to isolation wards, and the number of positive patients has also increased.We have 23 Covid-19 positive patients, while three have been discharged. A large number of the patients are said to have attended religious congregations. So far, we have 233 people who were traced after attending religious congregations. Test reports of 127 have been received. Of them, 13 have turned positive for Covid-19,” he added.

He added that 35 out of the 233 people are those who attended religious congregation at Delhi’s Nizamuddin. Of them, five have tested positive so far.

Concerned about the rise in Covid-19 cases, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, on Sunday evening, via video conferencing connected with nearly 377 religious leaders across 75 districts in UP and sought their support in spreading the word of social distancing and expedite efforts to observe it further in the coming days till the lockdown period till April 14.

Awanish Awasthi, UP’s additional chief secretary (home), said during a press briefing in Lucknow that 31 industrial units involved in manufacturing of PPE, 99 related to the production of sanitiser, and another 410 involved in the manufacture of medical equipment have started their operations.

“The figures have spiked on the account of people turning positive due to their attendance at the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi. Till Sunday evening, 1,499 of them were identified and 1,205 were sent to quarantine. Apart from them, 315 foreigners were also identified and 249 passports were seized. Forty-two FIRs have been filed so far,” Awasthi added.

UP’s principal secretary (health), Amit Mohan Prasad, said that about 50% of the total number of positive cases constitute people related to the Tablighi Jamaat event.

“Till Sunday evening, there are 276 positive cases of Covid-19 reported from 31 districts of UP. About 138, or nearly 50% of total cases, are people related to the Tablighi Jamaat event. Out of 276, 21 people have been discharged and three deaths have also been reported so far,” he added.

In Ghaziabad, the police on Sunday booked 15 persons including 10 Indonesian nationals, who were allegedly hiding in religious places and at a house in Shaheed Nagar locality.

“FIR was filed against 15 persons, including a guide who was with the group. All the 15 persons were sent to a quarantine facility on Saturday,” said Rakesh Mishra, circle officer (Sahibabad).

ersons were sent to a quarantine facility on Saturday,” said Rakesh Mishra, circle officer (Sahibabad).