JAMSHEDPUR: Even as almost 75% of all Covid-19 cases and deaths in India have been recorded in the country’s 35 largest urban agglomerations (UA), with 66% of cases and deaths being in just 13 of them, the steel hub of Jamshedpur is the only UA across the country with zero Covid-19 cases.
An urban agglomeration is defined as a continuous urban habitation that surrounds a city or the continuous geographical stretch of two or more contiguous cities. The Jamshedpur urban agglomeration — the biggest in Jharkhand — includes Jamshedpur, Tata Nagar Railway Colony, Mango, Jugsalai, Bagbera, Chhota Gobindpur, Haludbani, Sarjamda), Gadhra, Ghorabandha, Purihasa, Adityapur, Chota Gamahria and Kapali areas.
While East Singhbhum DC Ravi Shankar Shukla on Tuesday said the 3,000 people in 70 separate teams working to combat the virus and ease the pains of the people during the lockdown have done well, he cautioned that only 1,000-odd people in the city of 20 lakh have been tested so far and it is too early to claim that that the district has defeated the deadly virus.
Talking to TOI, Shukla said, “So far, we have tested 1,800 samples from East Singhbhum and adjoining districts. Of these, 1,000-odd are from the city. We have received results for 1,650 and the results of the remaining are awaited,” he said, adding that 250 samples, including 100 samples from East Singhbhum, are being tested every day.
While the government-run Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College and Hospital MGMMCH has been conducting Covid-19 tests since March 12, the private Tata Main Hospital (TMH) has received ICMR approval and is expected to start the facility soon. “We are working towards speeding up random testing,” Shukla told TOI.
Of all the tests conducted at MGMMCH, only one has returned positive. A migrant from who returned from Bengal to his home in the neighbouring district of Jamtara was diagnosed with Covid-19 on April 29.
Responding to a query, Shukla said with just about 1,000 samples from Jamshedpur being tested so far, it would be premature to conclude that the district is free of the novel coronavirus, particularly with a large number of students and migrants returning home in the last few days.
Shukla said the administration is now focusing on effective quarantine of all those returning be Shramik special trains. “Home quarantine of students and workers is a challenge for the administration and we have increased our digital surveillance system,” he added.
He added that the district has four dedicated Covid-19 hospitals with a total capacity of 700 beds. Apart from MGMMCH and TMH, Tata Motors Hospital and Uma Superspeciality Hospital in Mango locality have a dedicated facility for coronavirus patients.
Principal (retired) of MGMMCH and public health expert Dr Akhauri Amitabh Chandra Srivastava said: “The city has seen the outbreak of several infectious disease like chikungunya, dengue and Japanese encephialitis in the past few years. It has surprised people from all walks of life that Jamshedpur, the most cosmopolitan city in eastern India, does not have a single Covid-19 case.”
Srivastava, who has worked as a microbiologist for more than 35 years, added: “There are two aspects that we believe played a role. Jamshedpur is one of the cleanest cities in country and the locals are aware about healthcare, which is provided by the private sector (Tata Steel) here.”
He added, “The second reason is the impact urban residents have on the people from rural areas in the fringes of the city. Every day, thousands of labourers and workers employed with various companies take the learnings on hygiene, sanitation and healthcare to their areas. This is also helping keep the viral infection away from this region.”
Emphasizing that the journey ahead is long, Shukla said this is not the time for compliments or complacency. “The people must follow the lockdown norms and not venture out of their homes unnecessarily. People have cooperated with the administration in its effort to keep the district safe. We appeal to the people to stay home and continue supporting the measures in the days ahead.”
An urban agglomeration is defined as a continuous urban habitation that surrounds a city or the continuous geographical stretch of two or more contiguous cities. The Jamshedpur urban agglomeration — the biggest in Jharkhand — includes Jamshedpur, Tata Nagar Railway Colony, Mango, Jugsalai, Bagbera, Chhota Gobindpur, Haludbani, Sarjamda), Gadhra, Ghorabandha, Purihasa, Adityapur, Chota Gamahria and Kapali areas.
While East Singhbhum DC Ravi Shankar Shukla on Tuesday said the 3,000 people in 70 separate teams working to combat the virus and ease the pains of the people during the lockdown have done well, he cautioned that only 1,000-odd people in the city of 20 lakh have been tested so far and it is too early to claim that that the district has defeated the deadly virus.
Talking to TOI, Shukla said, “So far, we have tested 1,800 samples from East Singhbhum and adjoining districts. Of these, 1,000-odd are from the city. We have received results for 1,650 and the results of the remaining are awaited,” he said, adding that 250 samples, including 100 samples from East Singhbhum, are being tested every day.
While the government-run Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College and Hospital MGMMCH has been conducting Covid-19 tests since March 12, the private Tata Main Hospital (TMH) has received ICMR approval and is expected to start the facility soon. “We are working towards speeding up random testing,” Shukla told TOI.
Of all the tests conducted at MGMMCH, only one has returned positive. A migrant from who returned from Bengal to his home in the neighbouring district of Jamtara was diagnosed with Covid-19 on April 29.
Responding to a query, Shukla said with just about 1,000 samples from Jamshedpur being tested so far, it would be premature to conclude that the district is free of the novel coronavirus, particularly with a large number of students and migrants returning home in the last few days.
Shukla said the administration is now focusing on effective quarantine of all those returning be Shramik special trains. “Home quarantine of students and workers is a challenge for the administration and we have increased our digital surveillance system,” he added.
He added that the district has four dedicated Covid-19 hospitals with a total capacity of 700 beds. Apart from MGMMCH and TMH, Tata Motors Hospital and Uma Superspeciality Hospital in Mango locality have a dedicated facility for coronavirus patients.
Principal (retired) of MGMMCH and public health expert Dr Akhauri Amitabh Chandra Srivastava said: “The city has seen the outbreak of several infectious disease like chikungunya, dengue and Japanese encephialitis in the past few years. It has surprised people from all walks of life that Jamshedpur, the most cosmopolitan city in eastern India, does not have a single Covid-19 case.”
Srivastava, who has worked as a microbiologist for more than 35 years, added: “There are two aspects that we believe played a role. Jamshedpur is one of the cleanest cities in country and the locals are aware about healthcare, which is provided by the private sector (Tata Steel) here.”
He added, “The second reason is the impact urban residents have on the people from rural areas in the fringes of the city. Every day, thousands of labourers and workers employed with various companies take the learnings on hygiene, sanitation and healthcare to their areas. This is also helping keep the viral infection away from this region.”
Emphasizing that the journey ahead is long, Shukla said this is not the time for compliments or complacency. “The people must follow the lockdown norms and not venture out of their homes unnecessarily. People have cooperated with the administration in its effort to keep the district safe. We appeal to the people to stay home and continue supporting the measures in the days ahead.”
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