E-Paper
Monday Musings: When will Bhavani peth yield on Covid-19 front?
Accounting for almost one-fourth of the total Covid-19 positive cases and the maximum number of deaths due to this infection, the situation is rather grim in Bhavani peth
Week after week, fortnight after fortnight, Bhavani peth-- the highly-congested, low income locality with as many as 22 slums in the heart of old Pune-- has dominated the coronavirus situation in Pune.
No other part of Pune has been as badly hit by Covid-19 and is as worrisome as Bhavani peth. As of May 6, of the total 1,900 positive cases in Pune, Bhavani peth had 451- nearly one-fourth of the total and a good 104 cases more than the second worst-affected ward, Dhole Patil road.
As of April 15, Bhavani peth had 96 positive cases, exactly twice the number of cases in Dhole Patil road, and almost a month ago, on April 12, 11 of the total 34 deaths in the city had occurred in Bhavani peth.
While the whole of Pune is a red zone district, the most serious situation now stands limited to micro-containment clusters in five of the 15 wards, namely, Bhavani peth, Dhole Patil road, Yerawada-Kalas-Dhanori, Shivajinagar-Ghole road and Kasba-Vishrambaugwada.
Of these, Kasba and Vishrambaugwada have begun showing a flattening of the curve, as reported on May 10, and of the three remaining wards, the growth rate in positive cases is not as high in the Yerawada ward as compared to the other two.
The fact that the number of positive cases and deaths have been continuously rising in Bhavani peth indicates that the situation here is quite challenging.
One of the poorest sections of Pune city, this locality is dominated by Muslims, Dalits, and the underprivileged labour class belonging to various communities. It has wholesale markets dealing in timber, hardware, grains and steel. The locality draws its name from the Bhavani Mata mandir and the other famous landmark is Phule Wada - birthplace of the revolutionary social reformer, Mahatma Jyotiba Phule, in the neighbouring Ganj peth.
Health officials of Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) say that the situation here is very challenging because of the high population density. People live in extremely small houses and slums where it is difficult to maintain social distance. The summer heat makes it difficult to stay indoors and so, they are out on the streets.
The situation is compounded with common toilets and the civic body has taken to cleaning them thrice a day to keep them sanitised.
The poor people of this locality have become restless because of the loss of income brought about by the lockdown. Late reporting of cases from this area has meant two disastrous consequences: the spread of the virus in the community and a rising death toll as the critical cases could not be saved in the hospitals.
With two months having passed since the first Covid-19 case of Maharashtra was reported from Pune, the city’s health authorities would certainly have a better understanding of the challenges of Bhavani peth today. There will be no relief for Pune till this locality is brought under control.
abhay.vaidya@hindustantimes.com
