NE NEWS SERVICE
GANDHINAGAR, MAY 19
Gujarat on Tuesday reported 395 fresh COVID-19 cases and 25 deaths, including 21 in worst-hit Ahmedabad, taking the overall case count to 12,141 and the number of fatalities to 719, a health department official said.
Deputy CM Shri @Nitinbhai_Patel visits U. N. Mehta Institute of Cardiology & Research Centre to review the preparedness! pic.twitter.com/DgC8cFMIx9
— Ministry of Health (@MoHFW_GUJARAT) May 19, 2020
Besides Ahmedabad, two deaths were reported from Surat while one fatality each was reported from Aravalli and Gandhinagar, the official said.
A total of 239 patients were discharged from hospitals, taking the total number of the recovered patients to 5,043, the official said, adding that the state has 6,379 active cases, 49 of them in a critical condition.
Deputy CM Shri @Nitinbhai_Patel also held a video conference with all districts of Gujarat to review #COVID19 & Pre Monsoon Preparedness.
Adequate measures & active surveillance management have also been set up to manage any situation. pic.twitter.com/8a3eT7Tze0
— Ministry of Health (@MoHFW_GUJARAT) May 19, 2020
A total of 1,54,674 samples have been tested so far in Gujarat, including 5,865 samples in the last 24 hours, said Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi.
With 256 new detections, Ahmedabad now accounts for 8945 of the total 12,141 cases in the state and 576 of the total 719 fatalities.
https://twitter.com/InfoVadodaraGoG/status/1262725620422733829?s=20
Fresh cases were reported from 21 districts, including Surat (29), Kutch (21) and Vadodara (18), Ravi said, adding that the total case count in Surat and Vadodara now stands at 1,156 and 700, respectively.
The districts with the high number of coronavirus cases, apart from Ahmedabad, Surat and Vadodara, are Gandhinagar (190), Bhavnagar (114), Banaskantha (86), Anand (83), Rajkot (82), Aravalli (82), Mehsana (80), and Panchmahal (71).
https://twitter.com/InfoVadodaraGoG/status/1262726485539868672?s=20
Meanwhile, the state government on Tuesday said that more than 31 lakh people fall under containment zones, including 13 lakh in Ahmedabad, over 9 lakh in Surat, and over one lakh each in Gir-Somnath and Mahisagar districts.
Earlier in the day, the conditional relaxations announced by the state government for the fourth phase of the lockdown kicked in in non-containment zones of the state, including western Ahmedabad and other cities.
We regret to inform you of the unfortunate demise of Head Constable Bharatsinh Somaji in our battle against Coronavirus.
May his soul rest in peace. Our thoughts & prayers are with his family. pic.twitter.com/4OxIvjTye5
— Ahmedabad Police અમદાવાદ પોલીસ (@AhmedabadPolice) May 19, 2020
Gujarat COVID-19 figures are as follows: Positive cases 12,141, new cases 395, deaths 719, discharged people 5,043, active cases 6,379 and people tested so far 1,54,674.
262 new coronavirus cases in Ahmedabad, 21 deaths
The number of coronavirus cases in Ahmedabad district rose to 8,945 with 262 patients coming to light on Tuesday, while 21 patients died, taking the death toll to 576, the Gujarat health department said.
182 patients were discharged from Ahmedabad hospitals, taking the number of patients recovering from the virus to 3,023.
Citizens take note that the following areas of Ahmedabad District have been declared as the containment zones. Follow the guidelines, take precautions and stay safe. @CMOGuj @MoHFW_GUJARAT @InfoGujarat @ahmedabad_info @PIBAhmedabad pic.twitter.com/e4awjcbH5a
— Ahmedabad Collector (@CollectorAhd) May 19, 2020
The district has now 5,346 active cases.
Around 13 lakh people are living in containment zones in Ahmedabad district, the state government said.
(2/2) pic.twitter.com/qzkf93MWYO
— Ahmedabad Police અમદાવાદ પોલીસ (@AhmedabadPolice) May 19, 2020
Ten out of 11 containment zones in the city are on the eastern bank of Sabarmati river, where no relaxation has been provided from lockdown rules as per the announcement made by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Monday.
The western part of Ahmedabad, barring a containment zone of Gulbai Tekra locality, witnessed a rush as people came out in large numbers to make purchases. All kinds of shops except those inside malls were allowed to open.
Cop dies in Sabarkantha, toll rises to 2
A 48-year-old State Reserve Police Force head constable died of the coronavirus infection on Tuesday in Sabarkantha district, taking the number of COVID-19 deaths in the force to two, officials said.
The head constable, who tested positive for the virus on Monday, died at Himmatnagar civil hospital in Sabarkantha district on Tuesday, said Gujarat DGP Shivanand Jha.
Jha said the entire police force observed one-minute silence to honour the sacrifices of Prajapati and other corona warriors.
In the early hours of Monday, a 40-year-old head constable serving at a police station in Ahmedabad succumbed to the infection.
Over 300 police personnel, including an inspector and a woman assistant commissioner, have tested positive for coronavirus across the state so far.
Among these, 109 are still under treatment, while 225 have been discharged after recovery, said a statement from Gujarat police.
Civil hospital nurse succumbs to virus
Meanwhile, a head nurse of Ahmedabad civil hospital died on Tuesday while being treated for COVID-19.
She contracted the virus a few days back while on duty in the COVID-19 ward of the civil hospital, said a statement from Gujarat Health Department.
Dariyapur Cong MLA writes to NHRC over COVID-19 deaths in Ahmedabad
Gujarat Congress MLA Gyasuddin Shaikh on Tuesday alleged that negligence and improper treatment of COVID-19 patients in Ahmedabad civil hospital is leading to high number of deaths, and sought the intervention of the National Human Rights Commission in the matter.
In a letter sent to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Shaikh claimed a similar scenario was there in other government-run hospitals also where senior doctors are ‘shying away from treating COVID-19 patients and handing over the responsibility to junior doctors and para medical staff’.
“The high mortality rate of coronavirus patients in Ahmedabad is due to improper treatment and negligence of doctors and authorities,” the opposition MLA said.
“It has come to my notice that doctors are not aware about the death of a patient even after three hours. Relatives are also not informed about the treatment or progress in health of the patients,” Shaikh said in a video message.
Because of such practices, very high number of coronavirus patients have died in the civil hospital, he said.
“Thus, to safeguard the basic human rights of patients, I have written to NHRC today and sought its intervention. I have also demanded an investigation into the overall functioning of the civil hospital,” he said.
Shaikh, who represents Dariyapur seat of Ahmedabad, in his letter alleged that relatives of some patients were informed about victims’ deaths after almost a week.
The legislator also claimed that patients having other ailments are not given proper attention.
Relatives are forced to take the bodies in commercial vehicles because of non-availability of ambulances at the civil hospital, he alleged.
