E-Paper
Congested houses, lack of hygiene and alcoholism in three wards adding to Pune’s Covid-19 positive cases tally
Three wards in Pune - Bhavani peth, Kasba-Vishrambaug wada and Dhole Patil road – have emerged as the city’s hotspots
Sarika Gaikwad, a vegetable vendor, lives in two 10x12 sq ft room along with her husband, in-laws and two children at the Kashewadi slums in the Bhavani peth ward. For her social distancing is a privilege given the size of her house and the vicinity in which she lives is densely populated. So, when the Pune Municipal Corporation appeals to the residents to maintain distance to prevent the spread of Covid-19, she laughs and says, “It may be possible for them, not for us.”
If Mumbai’s Dharavi or Worli Koliwada are major contributors to the Covid-19 positive cases in the state capital, three wards in Pune - Bhavani peth, Kasba-Vishrambaug wada and Dhole Patil road – have emerged as the city’s hotspots. These three wards, according to statistics provided by PMC till April 15, account for 50 per cent of city’s total covid-19 positive tally. Of the 388 cases till Wednesday evening, these three wards reported 189 cases with most coming from slums and densely populated areas, according to PMC assistant medical officer Vaishali Jadhav.
According to PMC, Bhavani peth has 96 cases, Kasba-vishrambaug wada 45 cases and Dhole Patil road has 48 cases. The PMC records show more than 70 per cent of overall cases in each ward have come from pockets such as Kashewadi and Tadiwala road, which are slums from Bhavani peth and Dhole Patil road respectively.
“Lack of social distancing along with lack of hygiene are some of the reasons that these areas have seen maximum cases. Alcoholism, which brings down immunity, has also been a major contributing factor,” said Jadhav.
High concentration of population in small geographical area has now prompted PMC to send family members and neighbours of every positive case to facilities set up by the PMC for institutional quarantine.
“We have turned maximum focus on some of the hotspots in the city with our health teams conducting house surveys in every locality having positive cases. Since it is increasingly becoming difficult to ensure that social distancing norms are followed in these slums, we have asked people living in pockets to shift to the institutional quarantine as it is difficult for them to follow social distancing norms at home,” said PMC commissioner Shekhar Gaikwad.
The spread of Sars-Cov-2 virus in these areas can also be witnessed from another PMC report which shows that of the 37 deaths in city till April 14, 11 deaths have come from Bhavani peth ward alone. The city has till Thursday witnessed 43 deaths of Covid-29 positive patients, most of whom also had pre-existing ailments such as diabetes, hypertension along with alcohol driven liver failure, said Jadhav.
Aggressive screening has also been initiated with a special test centre started in Bhavani peth area by PMC.
“PMC took the first step to seal these areas and made it mandatory for residents to use masks when stepping out of their homes to purchase essential commodities. Now, the police is ensuring that there are few people on the roads,” added Gaikwad.
PMC issued a press statement on Thursday and said that they have started flu clinics in these areas which are mobile units. People with symptoms of flu can approach these mobile clinics for inspection.
A health worker, Sushma Pawar, raises her concern. “Police has sealed the areas and there is control on vehicle movement, but people who are living in crowded areas and mainly in slums or chawls are coming out on the streets, which is a concern for us as it can lead to the spread of the virus.”
Ramesh Bagwe of the city unit of the Congress who represents Bhavani peth area, on Thursday went to the slums to appeal to residents to stay at home.
Steps taken by PMC and police
- Quick response teams formed which are led by regional ward officer and medical officer.
- Contact tracing sped up and more survey teams deputed in these localities.
- Administration is ensuring that there is enough supply of essential commodities at the doorstep.
- PMC staff is visiting homes which have reported positive cases and sending the family members to a quarantine facility after a test. They are also sanitising the zone immediately.
-PMC is taking help of NGOs and political personalities to convince the citizens to stay home.
- Thermal scanning of all the people residing in Bhavani peth area has started.
