The drop in positivity rate in Mumbai comes at a time when the BMC has been criticized for a drop in the number of tests. “Since March 2020, we have focused on targeted testing,” said additional municipal commissioner Suresh Kakani. Instead of randomly testing people, the BMC has tested high-risk contacts and people working in essential services who are at higher risk of contracting the virus, among others.
“With the lockdown, crowed places such as malls and railway stations have no crowds. We have fewer tests, but our positivity rate has been dropping steadily,” said a doctor from the public health department.
A week back, on April 30, the city’s daily positivity rate was 9.9% — a sharp drop from 30% on April 3. A senior doctor from a BMC hospital said it is the nature of a pandemic to register a drop in positivity rate after the peak. Accordingly, in the many places across India that haven’t reached the peak yet, the positivity rate is higher. A report in TOI on May 7 mentioned the positivity rate in Goa was a record 41% over a 14-day period between April 21 and May 4. In the same period, the positivity rate in Delhi was 31.7% and in West Bengal it was 29.6%. In all, 13 states had a positivity rate over 20.
In Mumbai, the drop is witnessed across all wards. In congested Dharavi, the number of cases have dropped from 99 on a single day in April to 18 on May 7. “We tested aggressively to bring down the positive numbers. The partial lockdown also helped as crowding reduced at many places. With fewer cases, the high-risk contacts that need to be tested have reduced,” said Kiran Dighavkar, assistant municipal commissioner of G North ward.
Samajwadi Party MLA and Byculla corporator Rais Shaikh said there is no denying the positivity rate is coming down for Mumbai, but one also needs to look at the rising number of deaths. “The second wave has been all about the rapid rise in the number of deaths. This is because there is no clear treatment protocol and everyone is doing as they please. There has also been inadequate intensive care, worsening people’s suffering,” Shaikh said.
Colaba corporator Makrand Narwekar said there is a need to conduct more tests. “The dropping positivity rate is a welcome sign, but we need to test more to get a clear picture. The drop (in testing) I fear is because the civic body does not have the health infrastructure needed to fit everyone if required,” said Narwekar.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/positivity-rate-in-mumbai-drops-further-is-now-8-6/articleshow/82469760.cms
