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Pune district records weekly positivity rate at 3.3 per cent
According to the health department, the weekly Covid-19 positivity rate for Pune district is 3.3, below the state average of 3.4, and second to Mumbai’s 6.4
PUNE: According to the health department, the weekly Covid-19 positivity rate for Pune district is 3.3 while that for Ratnagiri is 2.1, Thane 2.3, and Palghar 2.9 – all below the state average of 3.4. However at 3.3, Pune still has the second highest weekly positivity rate after Mumbai which has a weekly positivity rate of 6.4. According to officials, Pune rural has fewer cases while the number of cases within city limits is higher but steady. As the daily Covid count of Pune city is higher than rural areas, city limits are also ready to tackle any surge in Covid cases. On Friday, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) reported 72 fresh cases, whereas the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) reported eight fresh infections.
About the Covid preparedness, Dr Sanjeev Wavare, assistant health chief, health department, PMC, said that at present, the focus is on increasing the testing for Covid. “With respect to hospital infrastructure, hospitals like Sassoon general hospital, Naidu hospital are already on standby. If need arises, we will also start our Baner facility. Oxygen and medicines for Covid are also ready,” Dr Wavare said. The overall testing is still low and on June 2, district health department officials reported that only 1,728 samples were tested in the district. The number of new Covid cases in Pune rural have remained low with only eight new infections reported on Friday.
About the preparedness, Ayush Prasad, chief executive officer, zilla parishad (ZP), said that the authorities are monitoring the situation very closely to identify any outbreak. “Our integrated disease surveillance control room is tracking not just Covid cases but also other similar cases of fever, bodyache, cough, cold etc. We are monitoring cases walking into OPDs, emergency rooms, ambulance calls and also checking data from pharmacies as some of the tablets and cough syrups are allowed to be sold over-the-counter. Pune rural does not have any trend as cases are few and disconnected with each other. There are either no symptoms or very minor symptoms. We are regularly sending samples for genome sequencing. We are taking no chances and preparing our infrastructure as well, but not diverting any resources exclusively for Covid yet as all current active patients are being cared for at home,” said Prasad. He added that oxygen generators have been installed in each government hospital. “Each bed has an oxygen supply. We have also checked if necessary pressure and purity is achieved at each bedside. I have instructed all hospitals and ambulances to fill up each cylinder as back-up. Covid medicines are highly perishable. With the help of the state government, we have been maintaining the necessary stock in government pharmacies,” said Prasad.
