Day 66 of coronavirus lockdown: Ground report from Indian cities

NEW DELHI: The number of novel coronavirus cases in various cities across the country continued to rise as the city administrations tried to get the local economy back on track.

Here is a look at the latest updates —

1

MUMBAI

• The average daily growth rate of coronavirus cases in two wards in the western suburbs and two in the eastern suburbs was over 8% in the week from May 21 to 27. The corresponding average for all 24 wards of Mumbai combined was 5.17 % during the same period.
• The number of sealed buildings in the city has nearly doubled in 10 days, with Andheri (West) and Kurla reporting the maximum barricaded structures. Till May 18, 1,767 buildings had been sealed and the number jumped to 3,097 as of Wednesday with the city witnessing a spike in coronavirus infections. The number of containment zones has also increased to 696 from 674 during the same period.
• Mumbai is currently trending at third place on daily count of Covid-19 cases among a group of major international cities. When Mumbai registered 1,097 new Covid-19 cases on Wednesday, many others reported much lower numbers. The only two notable exceptions are Moscow (2,140) and Sao Paulo (3,466).

2

DELHI

• Rajya Sabha officer tests Covid positive, two floors of Parliament Annexe building sealed.
• Massive jams at Delhi Gurugram borders on Friday morning after Haryana sealed its borders with the national capital.
• A day after recording a high of 792 cases, the number of infections crossed 1,000 in a single day, with 13 deaths also being reported on Thursday.
• A 24-year-old nurse working at a private hospital in Gurugram tried to commit suicide in her room on Thursday after her Covid-19 test result came positive. She is under treatment at the hospital.
• At least 67 Covid-related deaths have occurred at Safdarjung Hospital since February 1, when patients started getting treated there for the deadly viral infection.
• If the Centre permits, Delhi government is ready to grant more relaxations in the lockdown to give the economy breathing space and people livelihoods.

3

CHENNAI

• There is a high demand for pest control and disinfection services in Tamil Nadu after the reopening of commercial establishments following the relaxations in the lockdown.
• The number of Covid-19 cases in Chennai may be going up but the government seems to have abandoned the idea of testing family members and neighbours of the people who have Covid-19, and disinfect their premises. If at all steps are taken, it’s done at the insistence of people who can pull some strings.
• The new integrated terminal has started to take shape at Chennai airport after AAI resumed work after a gap or more than a month since lockdown 1.0. The work which began in a small way on May 4 has been stepped up and more workers and equipment were being engaged since May 21.
• The Tamil Nadu legal fraternity in Tamil Nadu has decided to learn to live with the virus and is demanding resumption of regular court hearings from June 1. There is no point in languishing without income any more, they said.

4

BENGALURU

• The city's south division police have launched a novel initiative - Namma Hiriyaru (our elders) - for the protection and welfare of senior citizens. Eigh police stations in the division covering a population of 13 lakh, 10% of which constitute the elderly, will be implementing the initiative.
• Real estate prices across Karnataka are set to ease with the state government planning to reduce guidance value for properties between 5% and 10%. The guidance value had been increased by 5% to 25% in January 2019.

5

LUCKNOW

• Jewellery shop owners in Lucknow say their business has slumped due to lockdown.
• UP CM Yogi Aditynanath held a meeting with Industrial Association today and signed Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) for employment of migrant workers who have returned to the state amid coronavirus lockdown.
• 50 out of 2337 samples that were tested yesterday found positive for Covid-19 in Uttar Pradesh.
• With 27 lakh people having arrived in the state already, UP government is likely to stop its free bus and train services from May end.
• The Allahabad high court has directed the UP government to explain its scheme for the rehabilitation of migrant workmen and their families in the state.

6

KOLKATA

• Buzz back at Kolkata airport as flight operations start after 2 months.
• A passenger in his mid-40s travelling with his relatives to Kolkata from Delhi was detected with fever and taken to the quarantine centre in New Town.
• To avoid crowding, the KMC markets department has decided to open only three gates for shoppers to enter the market.
• The Covid-19 situation under Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation areas, covering Salt Lake and a large portion of Rajarhat, is under control so far said civic officials.
• Buying groceries and essentials from fixed shops, not moving out beyond permitted hours in the morning and not attending offices on a regular basis — these are among some of the rules KMC and Kolkata Police want to enforce in the new containment zones after lockdown rules are eased in other parts of Kolkata.

7

CHANDIGARH

• Not more than 150 students in one centre, one assistant superintendent for every 15 students, at least 4-6 feet distance between every examinee, thermal screening, sanitization of exam centres and mask must for all students, teachers and parents.
• Over 48% of Punjab residents stranded in other parts of the country and aboard have so far made their way back.
• Seven new cases of coronavirus were reported in Chandigarh on Thursday, taking the tally to 289.
• Punjab recorded 19 fresh cases of Covid-19 on Thursday, taking the overall tally of infected people in the state to 2,158.

8

AHMEDABAD

• They are the real frontline Covid-19 warriors – and have borne the brunt of the disease the most. An anonymous list that made rounds in several doctors’ groups on Thursday indicated that the number of junior (resident and intern) doctors in government hospitals is more than 100 now and they make 73% of total affected doctors in government hospital set-ups.
• Thursday brought a sort of silver lining for the district worst affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in Gujarat, Ahmedabad, which reported its lowest number of daily cases in a week and least number of deaths in 13 days.
• The state government on Thursday informed the Gujarat high court that it has acquired 62% of total beds in 45 private hospitals in Ahmedabad after these hospitals were designated Covid-19 care facilities.
• In about 10 days, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation acquired 1,500 beds in 42 city-based private hospitals on 50-50 sharing basis for Covid-19 and non-Covid-19 patients.
• A day after the list of 40-plus doctors from the city working at private clinics and hospitals who have tested positive for Covid-19 made the rounds on social media, the Ahmedabad Medical Association and Indian Medical Association started drawing up a list with authentic information and specialities.

9

HYDERABAD

• Hyderabad is among the 14 hotspot metro cities selected for the sampling to monitor the pattern of Covid-19 transmission and help generate evidence on the role of asymptomatic and mild infections in transmission.
• The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) will conduct sero-surveillance in five areas of Greater Hyderabad to find if there is any community transmission of Covid-19.
• A sudden jump in Covid-19 deaths in the state —35 casualties in 10 days (from May 18 to 28) — has left doctors scrambling for answers. These 35 deaths account for more than half of the Covid-19 deaths reported in Telangana till date (67 total deaths).