Punjab’s Mohali district tames Covid-19 for now

No fresh infection reported for 11 days and with two remaining patients being discharged, the district left with no active case

Mohali residents, and more importantly the front-line warriors, are breathing easy. The district has not reported a single case of Covid-19 since May 10, and on Thursday (May 21), it is left with no active case as two patients who were admitted at Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, recovered and were discharged.

In the past two months, the district witnessed 105 Covid-19 cases, out of which 102 defeated the virus while three succumbed.

Mohali once topped among all districts of Punjab in the number of cases and was considered a hotspot. Of the 105 confirmed cases, 46 were from Jawaharpur village in Dera Bassi, while eight were from Nayagaon and other were scattered across the entire district.

Among those who have died are a 65-year-old Nayagaon man (March 31), 74-year-old Kharar woman (April 6) and a 74-year-old Zirakpur man Zirakpur (May 7).

In the past 10 days, the health department has been taking around 100 samples every day, but all have tested negative so far.

Dr Harmandeep Kaur Brar, district’s nodal officer for Covid-19, says: “We have to wait for 28 days after the last positive case to declare the district virus-free,” she said.

Adding a note of caution, civil surgeon Dr Manjit Singh said: “Although there is no case in the district, people should not assume the deadly disease has been fully contained and eradicated. The threat of coronavirus is still there, even as the curfew has been lifted. If we adopt a careless attitude and do not take precautions, the disease can strike back in no time.”