At least 12 more COVID-19 patients died, while over 170 people tested positive in Pune district on Tuesday as its death toll rose to 357, while its total case tally went up to 7,947, according to the district administration.
Divisonal Commissioner Dr. Deepak Mhaisekar said only 2,861 remain active, while 4,729 patients (nearly 60% of the total cases) have been discharged till date. More than 275 patients have been discharged in the past 48 hours, authorities said.
While concentrated screening and sample testing have somewhat curbed the spread of the virus in the city’s high-risk zones, the number of cases in non-containment zones have been steadily rising in the past few days.
From May 3 to May 17, a little over 25% of the cases in Pune city were reported from non-containment zones. However, over the fortnight till May 31, this figure rose to 39%. Nearly 1,000 cases have been reported from non-containment zones in the past fortnight.
Wards that were till now relatively unscathed by the pandemic, like Aundh-Baner, Kothrud-Bavdhan, Warje-Karvenagar and Sinhagad Road, have seen a steady rise in cases.
Dr. Mhaisekar said that along with the fatalities in Pune, the total death toll in Pune division, which also includes Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Solapur districts, has now risen to 477. Pune division’s cumulative case tally has reached 10,247, of which 4,135 cases are active. “As many as 5,635 people — nearly 60 % of the total cases reported in these five districts — have been discharged till date. A total of 223 of the active patients are critical,” Dr. Mhaisekar said.
He said Solapur reported a spike of 43 cases and three more deaths to take its total tally to 992 and its death count to 88.
“Of the total cases, 458 are active, while 446 patients have been discharged. Satara’s death toll has risen to 22, while 53 new cases were reported to take the district’s total tally to 573. Of these, 351 are active and 200 have been discharged,” Dr. Mhaisekar said.
Kolhapur district, which has seen fluctuating numbers, saw a dip in new cases, reporting only 16 cases in the last 24 hours. Its tally now stands at 623, with 422 active cases and 195 discharged. The district has reported six deaths thus far.