Bhubaneswar: The Covid-19 re-curve is on an upward spiral and it is heading towards its peak in Odisha as cases are hovering between 10,000 and 12,000 every day, said health expert Dr Niroj Mishra.
Speaking to OTV on Wednesday, Mishra said such situation may continue for the next 7-10 days as it is in plateauing mode due to the ongoing lockdown in the State.
“Next 7-10 days are really important to curb the pandemic in the State. Now, the COVID situation here is in plateau stage because of the strict imposition of Covid-19 guidelines and lockdown. The rate of positivity has come down below 20 per cent which is a good achievement,” said Mishra.
“The rate of positivity has reduced due to the timely announcement of lockdown, otherwise things would have been out of control. Single-day cases would have touched 20,000-25,000 by now. The positivity rate will decline after 7-10 days. Most likely, the daily infections may witness a downward trend by the last week of May or first week of June,” said Mishra.
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Currently, the rate of positivity is around 35 per cent in Bhubaneswar which is a matter of concern. Making matter worse, the pandemic is now spreading its tentacle to the rural pockets.
Mishra advised to focus on the rural areas and said, “We will have to give special attention in rural pockets as the rate of infection is increasing there every day. Absence of proper testing facilities, lack of awareness and non-adherence to Covid-19 appropriate behaviour in rural belts is a major huddle in curbing the pandemic there.”
However, the good thing is that the government has turned its focus towards the rural areas, he said adding, “Had the government done it 15 days earlier, the situation of the pandemic in the State would have been much better.”
(Edited By Pradeep Singh)