Cities struggle to manage COVID-19 cases, as the second wave of infection sets in

After a decline in new cases in the month of August, Mumbai is experiencing a second wave of infection. Mumbai registered a total of 30,474 cases in the entire August and it has already witnessed 15,227 cases in the first nine days of September.

Pune stands as the most infected district in Maharashtra with 2,23,710 cases followed by Mumbai with 1,65,306 and Thane with 1,52,934.

Similarly, Delhi broke all its past records of the highest single-day spike on September 9th when it registered 4,039 cases taking the capital’s tally beyond 2,00,000. The Union Territory stands as the sixth most infected region in the country. So far, more than 20 lakh tests have been conducted by the Delhi government.

With Odisha added to the list of states of concern for the centre, Bhubaneshwar has turned into a hotspot and producing almost 400 cases a day. The state’s tally on COVID-19 cases stands at 1,43,117 cases with district Khodra reporting the maximum cases (24,625).

Source: Hindustan Times | Covid19india.org

National capital records biggest single day spike for second consecutive day

After registering 4039 cases on September 9th, Delhi recorded more than 4300 cases on the 10th, making it the biggest single-day spike for the straight second day. So far, 4666 persons have succumbed to COVID-19 infection in Delhi and more than 1 lakh 75 thousand people have recovered. The Union Territory has conducted more than 19.6 lakh tests until now. The capital has 25,416 active patients as of now.

The Delhi Government is using a combination of both RT-PCR and RAT tests for combating the virus. On September 10th, the government conducted 9004 RT-PCR tests and close to 50,000 RAT tests.

Amidst the surge in new cases in the capital, private hospitals are experiencing a rush, putting strain on the medical infrastructure. As per the Corona App, on September 10th, till 5:30 pm, out of the 1,212 ICU beds with ventilators available in private hospitals, 687 were occupied while of 976 ICU beds without ventilators, 642 were occupied.

Earlier, the Delhi government also allowed its residents to undergo RT-PCR tests without any medical prescription or formal reference from a doctor. The number of such tests have been capped at 2000 a day and the person will be required to show his Aadhaar card as proof of Delhi address.

Source: Livemint | Covid19India.org | India TV

Lucknow faces shortage of ICU beds

As the nation witnesses a surge in daily cases, Lucknow struggles to provide beds equipped with intensive care for COVID-afflicted residents. The city has reported close to 470 COVID-19 deaths so far. For three million people, the city has just 283 ICU beds in 18 hospitals.

Most of the hospitals like PGI, KGMU, ERA, Vidhya Hospital are running at 100% capacity. As cases increase in the city and state, the demand for oxygen is increasing sharply. The media report has also highlighted that demand for oxygen has almost increased by 5 times in the Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences.

Source: Hindustan Times

Strain on healthcare facilities in Pune increases

As the number of new cases increases in Pune, healthcare facilities in the city are facing a severe crunch of manpower. At present, the attrition rate in healthcare facilities in Pune is pegged at around 8 to 9%. The area under the Pune Municipal Corporation is reporting over 2000 cases daily, on average.

The fact that citizens are also pouring in from nearby rural areas like Ahmednagar, Jalgaon, Satara etc is adding to the burden of healthcare facilities in Pune.

In another development, the jumbo COVID-19 facility that was coming up at the College of Engineering Pune (CoEP), has run into problems due to administrative mismanagement and poor governance. The private agency that was engaged in the operation of the facility pulled out of the contract on September 9th.

The agency and citizens have criticized the way Pune Municipal Corporation has administered the operation and maintenance of the jumbo facility.

Source: The Indian Express | Times Now

Health officials confirm community spread in Shimla

In a recent statement by Shimla’s Chief Medical Officer (CMO) it was established that COVID-19 has reached community transmission stage in the tourist city in Himachal Pradesh. The CMO said that with each passing day, cases are increasing and we are unable to trace any index cases or travel history.

The health department has also advised other departments and people to conduct any meetings in the open, as the spread of infection is lower in open, well-ventilated spaces as compared to closed spaces with AC systems. The hill state has around 7832 COVID-19 cases.

Source: Livemint

Compiled by Rishabh Shrivastava