Mayor Murlidhar Mohol said the civic body has put a plan in place as it expects the Covid situation to worsen during winter.
After registering a jump in active Covid-19 cases for two consecutive days, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is bracing for the second wave of coronavirus infections, and has even warned that the number of active cases may cross 19,500.
“I appeal to Pune residents to take care and beat the virus. We have done it earlier and we will do it again,†said Additional Municipal Commissioner Rubal Agarwal on Wednesday.
She said Pune city had seen the highest number of active cases — 17,781 — on September 20. But the second wave of infections may entail a higher number of active cases, pushing the number beyond 19,500.
Mayor Murlidhar Mohol said the civic body has put a plan in place as it expects the Covid situation to worsen during winter. “We all need to take extra care to avoid the possible worsening of the pandemic situation. We could avoid the second wave by fighting it together,†he said.
The PMC has claimed that it has adequate facilities to accommodate the rising number of patients, and anticipates that 40 per cent were likely to be in home isolation, while 60 percent would be in institutional isolation, of which 45 per cent would be in Covid care centres and 15 per cent would need oxygen support.
Going by its estimates of past infections and trends, the PMC expects around 8,800 patients in Covid care centres, which can accommodate 10,000 patients. Most such centres across the city are temporarily closed now due to lack of patients but the civic administration has said they will be restarted as per requirement.
The PMC also expects, during the second wave, demand for 2,934 oxygen beds, including 2,347 oxygen beds and 294 ICU beds each with ventilators and without ventilators. It has claimed to have 3,244 oxygen beds, 446 ICU beds with ventilators and 401 ICU beds without ventilators, to accommodate Covid-19 patients.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the PMC registered 384 new patients, more than double the number of recovered patients the same day, 168. The number of active cases in the city is 4,386, while six deaths due to the viral infection were also reported, taking the toll to 4,401.
© The Indian Express (P) Ltd
