Weekly Covid cases drop across Haryana

Sushil Manav
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, May 17

Even as the Covid curve shown a downward trend during the week that ended on Sunday, the number of deaths in the past seven days remained almost close to the mortalities of the preceding week in Haryana.

According to the state’s weekly status report on Covid, 78,530 persons tested positive between May 10 and 16. As many as 1,01,009 cases were reported in the preceding week from May 3 to 9. The weekly cases were 90,569 from April 26 to May 2 and 67,348 from April 19 to 25.

Haryana to procure DRDO medicine

Health Minister Anil Vij on Monday said the state government would buy the drug 2DG prepared by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) for the treatment of Corona patients. He said the drug was expected to provide speedy recovery to corona patients and would reduce the need of extra oxygen for the patients.

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It is for the first time since cases started showing an upward trend from February 8 that the new infections in a week are lesser than the previous one.

However, apprehensions are being raised over the official figures as the testing remains “poor” in rural areas.

On the other hand, there is little respite as far as the number of deaths is concerned. At least 1,080 persons succumbed to the virus in the past seven days against 1,119 deaths reported in the preceding week.

Doctors say a corresponding dip in the number of deaths is expected to be witnessed in the next seven to 14 days as the critical patients of the past two weeks are still under treatment in hospitals and ICUs.

The second wave of Covid-19 has seen the maximum number of deaths in the state. Of the 6,685 persons who died in Haryana since the outbreak of the pandemic in March last year, almost half (3,270) have lost their lives in the past four weeks (from April 19 to May 16).

Although new infections have shown a downward trend, the Health Department is in no hurry to assume that the state has crossed the peak of the current wave.

“This is a welcome trend, but let us wait for another week before we can say with surety that the peak is over,” said Rajeev Arora, ACS, Health and Family Welfare.