In a bid to increase the detection of COVID-19 cases, the sample testing capacity across Pune district would be doubled from 3,000 to 6,000, Pune Divisional Commissioner Deepak Mhaisekar said on Monday.
“The present testing capacity across all facilities in the district is around 3,000 samples. I have already spoken with the director of the National Institute of Virology (NIV) last week and they will increase their capacity by 60-70%, while the testing at facilities like the National AIDS Research Institute (NARI) as well as the B.J. Medical College would be increased threefold, thus doubling the testing number to around 6,000 samples,” Dr. Mhaisekar told The Hindu.
He said the increase in testing capacity was expected to start by the end of this week. “A few technical procedural changes have yet to be completed in which validation from the NIV is required. Once that is over, we can double the testing by June 22,” Dr. Mhaisekar said.
Recovery rate is 62.73%
Meanwhile, the district’s death toll crossed the 500-mark to reach 501 on Monday, while more than 220 new cases took the total case tally to 12,147. However, Dr. Mhaisekar said of the total cases, only 4,027 were active while over 7,700 people had been discharged across the district, which has a recovery rate of 62.73%
He said that along with Pune’s total fatalities, the total death toll in Pune division — which includes the districts of Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Solapur along with Pune — has now risen to 702. Pune division’s total case tally stood at 15,563 of whom only 5,083 were active cases while 9,778 people in these five districts had been discharged thus far.
“A total of 272 people in the division are ‘critical’. This total is concentrated in Pune, which has 255 critical patients and Solapur, which has 17. Of Pune’s critical cases, 64 are on ventilator,” Dr. Mhaisekar said.
After Pune, Solapur is the worst-afflicted, reporting nine COVID-19 related deaths on Sunday, taking its death toll to 155, while 63 new cases saw its total case tally rise to 1,722. However, only 659 of these are active.
“Satara reported 12 new cases, taking its case tally to 738. But the number of active patients has come down to 208 with 499 recoveries. The district has reported 31 fatalities till now,” Dr. Mhaisekar said.
No permission for dindis
He said that district collectors and police authorities in Pune, Satara and Solapur had been instructed not to give permission to various dindis or processions of warkaris (devotees) on foot to make their way to the temple town of Pandharpur in Solapur on occasion of the Ashadhi Wari.
The administration, after much deliberation, had earlier scrapped the pilgrimage on foot made by lakhs of warkaris carrying palkhis (palanquins) bearing the padukas (footprints) of saints Dnyaneshwar and Tukaram to Pandharpur in wake of mounting COVID-19 cases in Pune, Solapur and Satara.
“However, in case some warkaris to decide to take out a dindi. Authorities have been instructed to restrain them as cases have emerged near Vithal Rukmini Temple in Pandharpur. There is also a containment zone in the area near the temple premises,” said Dr. Mhaisekar.