Threat of Covid-19 resurgence in Odisha as residents throw caution to winds

In another worrying sign, the state reported 47 deaths, the highest daily toll so far, on Saturday. A senior government official said the situation was being monitored closely on a daily basis.

Published on: Jun 27, 2021, 08:53:03 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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Odisha reported 3,554 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, 600 more than Friday and the test positivity rate (TPR) stayed above 5% for the fourth straight day after going under on June 21 and 22, triggering concerns that the infection may be on the rise again following the easing of lockdown and resultant violation of Covid-19 protocols. While some experts think the resurgence could also be linked to a lesser number of RT-PCR tests being done off late, the government is mulling extending the lockdown in at least 8 districts and the capital city of Bhubaneswar.

The government thinks the test positivity rate is rising due to violations of Covid-containment and lockdown regulation in Odisha. (PTI/File Photo)

TPR is on the rise since June 23 and in many districts including Khurda, Puri, Mayurbhanj, Jagatsinghpur and Cuttack it is higher than the state average, with Khurda recording 10.64% TPR- the highest in the state. As per the state Covid dashboard, TPR in 24 districts has shown a rising trend. The government thinks the TPR is rising due to violations of Covid-containment norms.

“People out to buy a packet of milk are often found gossiping instead of returning home after the purchase. Infection is not declining because of people not adhering to Covid appropriate behaviour. The virus is there in the environment so transmission will happen,” director of state health services Bijay Mohapatra said.

In another worrying sign, the state reported 47 deaths, the highest daily toll so far, on Saturday. Mohapatra said the government was closely monitoring the situation on a daily basis. “We have to see whether the severity [of infection] has lessened or not and if there is another surge. As [the] current lockdown restriction will continue till July 1, the government will decide whether to further relax restrictions at a high-level meeting on June 30.”

Noted microbiologist Dr TM Mohapatra said the TPR may be higher due to the percentage of RT-PCR tests, considered to be the gold-standard of Covid testing, not going up. “In the last 10 days, the percentage of RT-PCR tests to total tests conducted is around 30-32%, the rest are Rapid Antigen tests. The easing of lockdown also led to people throwing all Covid appropriate behaviours to winds, which is also fuelling fresh infections,” he said.

He cited the instances of crowding at vaccination centres without adherence to Covid-appropriate behaviour as a case in point. On Saturday, the state police failed to contain thousands of people flocking to vaccination centres in Balasore and Cuttack. In Balasore Zilla School, over 1000 people arrived to receive the vaccine against the stock of 600 vaccine doses, resulting in chaos, officials said.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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