Coronavirus hits Kharghar, Panvel and Alibaug hard; Raigad district to get 2 jumbo centres

Aditi Tatkare with JSW staff at the site of jumbo centre on their premises

Faced with a massive surge in Coronavirus infections in Kharghar and other areas under the Panvel civic body and rural corners of Alibaug, authorities have stepped up efforts to set up two jumbo COVID centres for the first time in Raigad district. As many as 42 people were felled by the disease on April 22.

A testing centre has been opened at a senior citizens' hall at Alibaug to conduct RT-PCR and rapid antigen tests at government rates

The Panvel Municipal Corporation (PMC) reported daily cases rising from 529 on April 9 to 616 on April 22, taking active infections from 3,798 to 4,715. Similarly, active patients shot up to 193 in Kharghar itself.

The situation is equally alarming Alibaug that reported 273 cases on Friday against less than a hundred two weeks ago. Officials say all its 160 COVID beds are occupied and many have been sent to either private or other nearby set-ups.

"The health infrastructure in Panvel PMC is very poor, the only hospital they have is the Sub District hospital, Panvel, which has around 95 beds and a dedicated COVID Health Care Centre at Kalamboli with 72 oxygenated beds, which recently started operation. But getting quality medical professionals continues to be a challenge for the district administration," said a doctor.

A local doctor, who did not wish to be named, added, "We have to act fast or else, with every passing day Kharghar and other areas within PMC will witness a large surge in cases. People do not want to get into quarantine centres as they are poorly managed. Second, non-availability of oxygenated beds, injections like remdesivir is making patients' relatives run from pillar to post. Not all can afford treatment at private hospitals."

The doctor, who lives in Kharghar, said, "For every positive case, 25 low-risk individuals should be traced, tested and quarantined on the first day as well as on the 7th day. If this is not done, a separate chain is created, adding to potential superspreaders. Poor testing and inefficient enforcement of quarantine norms by ward offices lead to such situations."

State Minister Aditi Tatkare, who is also the Guardian Minister for Raigad district, said the spike in Alibaug and its villages like Revdanda, Rewas, Sagaon is a big concern as the area is also a second home for many from other cities. Tourism has been stopped in the entire district for the past 10-15 days, she said. "Hopefully in the next five to six days the number would come down."

Apart from 42 deaths in one single day last week, Raigad had witnessed 19-20 COVID deaths daily over the past few days. Tatkare appealed to the people to follow lockdown norms and stick to mask, hand sanitising and social distance. A testing centre has been opened at a senior citizens' hall at Alibaug to conduct RT-PCR, rapid antigen and COVID antibody tests at government rates, she said.

With 174 patients admitted to the sub-district hospital at Panvel and all the beds occupied at the Kalamboli COVID centre, a large number of people have turned to private nursing homes and smaller hospitals. The availability of beds can be checked in real time on www.covid19raigad.in, she said.

Explaining efforts to expand capacity, Tatkare said, "We are highly obliged to JSW industrial house for having agreed to convert their newly built hospital for their staff on their premises at Pen-Dolvi to an 800-bed jumbo care centre. I visited the site and had a high-level discussion with JSW senior officials, as per discussions held with Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and State Health Minister Rajesh Tope."

"Another set-up with 500-600 beds will be coming up shortly at the Cotton Corporation India Godown in Kalamboli. We are already in dialogue with CIDCO and they would be doing the needful for converting the godown into a Jumbo COVID care centre. The two dedicated jumbo centres would be very helpful in tackling the medical infrastructure requirement in Raigad district," said the minister.

Fire safety norms must

In the backdrop of the Virar ICU fire that killed 13 patients, Tatkare said they are taking fire safety norms, including standby fire engines, at the two upcoming jumbo centres with utmost seriousness. "We are fine waiting for a few extra days, but we have to ensure that all fire safety norms and permissions are in place before the set-ups become operational," she said. The minister said the premises are not primarily meant to run medical facilities. "Hence, extra precaution will be required to avoid any untoward incident."

42
No. of COVID deaths in Raigad district on April 22