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650 cases from 3 sq km area of Tadiwala, Mahatma Phule peth slum
These two wards of the Pune Municipal Corporation were among the first to be declared red zones as social distancing is a challenge due to the cramped living conditions
The three-sq-km area that covers Tadiwala road and the Mahatma Phule peth slum have have reported at least 650 Covid-19-poisitve cases, which is 18 per cent of the total cases (3,598 as of May 18), in a city with a population of 40 lakh, spread over 331 square kilometres.
These two areas from Dhole Patil road and Bhavani peth wards of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) were among the first to be declared red zones as social distancing is a challenge due to the cramped living conditions.
According to DP road ward officer Dayanand Sonkamble, within DP road, the most infected containment zone is the Tadiwala road slum, with a population of 70,000 living in 13,000 houses.
“We have, till date, found 350 positive cases in an area spanning about 1.5 square kilometres at the Tadiwala road slum. While their initial excuse to go out was to buy groceries, we started providing ration kits, then people ventured out to buy vegetables, for which we will now only allow vegetable vendors every three days and ensure social distancing is followed,” said Sonkamble.
According to PMC officials, as of May 18, DP road ward has 700 cases while, Bhavani peth ward has reported 627 cases.
In the Bhavani peth ward, which is another red zone, the Mahatma Phule slum is spread across an area of 1.5km. Sonkamble said that most of the cases identified in the area are employees of a nearby hospital where Covid-19 patients are being treated.
Councillor Ajay Khedekar from ward 18 which is under Bhavani peth, covering most of the Mahatma Phule area, said that the youth in the area are often seeing venturing out and even play cards despite multiple efforts to ensure that they remain indoors.
Khedekar said, “The Rapid Action Force (RAF) has been deployed in the area, but still we see people moving around. We must also consider the fact that there are about eight-10 people living in a 10x12 feet room and so social distancing is a luxury. Right now the PMC is also cleaning toilets at least three times a day and I have also installed sanitisers at every public toilet in my ward. We have also provided rations kits to people. Initially people hid the symptoms of Covid-19 fearing social boycott, which led to a rise in the number of cases. Mobile vans have also been deployed for swab collection so that people do not have to travel to distant places. Most of these people are uneducated and to explain social distancing became difficult, however, we are carrying out aggressive information campaigns.”
Mahatma Phule slum is the most affected area within the Bhavani peth ward. Khedekar also said that many class four civic employees also live here who provide essential services to the city. “The employees move around the city and this could have been the reason for the spread,” he claimed.
