by Peerzada Arshad Hamid
NEW DELHI, Apr 4 (NNN-XINHUA) – Amid a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, the situation there has been worrying.
In the past seven days, at least 38 people have lost their lives in the district of Durg, about 39 km west of Raipur, the capital city of Chhattisgarh.
CategoriSed as one of the worst-affected districts in the state, Durg witnessed a massive spike in COVID-19 cases, in the ongoing wave of infection. Health officials said, owing to a higher number of COVID-19 cases, the district seems to emerge as the epicentre of the second wave.
Doctors at the hospital are overwhelmed, as 6,000 people have been infected in the last seven days. The local administration announced a complete nine-day lockdown, starting from Apr 6 until Apr 14.
Doctors at the 500-bed hospital in Durg said, the situation was worrying as the hospital didn’t have space to accommodate the bodies.
“Almost 10 cases are received at the hospital daily, and every day four to five people are dying because of it,” said Dr P R Balkishor, chief medical superintendent of Durg hospital.
Reports said, the increasing deaths have triggered a rush at the graveyard and crematorium in the district, meant for COVID-19 bodies.
Sarveshwar Narendra Bhure, collector of Durg, told the media that, the administration was handling the situation and performing the last rites of the bodies in adherence to COVID-19 protocol.
On Friday, the government said, the pandemic situation in 11 states, including Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh, was of serious concern.
During a meeting with top officials of these states, a senior government official pointed out that, tiers 2 and 3 cities, along with peri-urban areas, recorded the recent high rises in COVID-19 cases.
Describing the situation as worrisome, experts said during the meeting that, the spread of infection from these areas to the rural areas with weak health infrastructure would overwhelm the local administration.
Yesterday morning, India’s federal health ministry said, Chhattisgarh reported 4,174 fresh COVID-19 cases and 43 related deaths.
Reports said Durg accounted for 964 of the new infections, taking the district’s caseload to 41,032, including 766 deaths.
Chhattisgarh’s COVID-19 case tally rose to 357,978 yesterday, and the related death toll has risen to 4,247.
A government spokesman said, the 11 states categorised as “states of grave concern” were advised to take up immediate and effective measures, to ensure the containment of active cases and daily deaths through adherence to the standard clinical management protocol.– NNN-XINHUA
