With coronavirus raging across Mumbai, Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation (VVMC) reported a positivity rate of 55 per cent in April. This puts VVMC among the worst-hit civic corporations in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).
To make matters worse, hospitals within VVMC are reporting a shortage of beds for COVID-19 patients. Around 36,500 tests were conducted in Vasai-Virar during April. Out of these tests, 20,000 came back positive, hence reflecting a higher than usual positivity rate.
The VVMC covers more than 25 lakh residents and the real figure could be even greater since testing has reduced to some extent. While around 30,000 samples were collected from across Mumbai every day in April, Vasai-Virar only managed 1,000 to 1,500 tests per day in April. It’s worth noting that the COVID-19 positivity rate in Vasai-Virar had touched 68 per cent on April 19.
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On Thursday, May 6, VVMC registered 769 new COVID-19 cases and 12 deaths taking the death toll from the pandemic to 914 in the region. Around 11,296 active cases are currently being treated in the region.
The health infrastructure in VVMC has also been severely impacted due to the rise in cases with civic data showing that hospitals in Vasai-Virar only have seven ventilators and two ICU beds available as of May 6.
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“Many people lost their lives due to delay in getting beds. No beds were added in anticipation of the second wave. The corporation is also dragging its feet on installation (sic) of oxygen plants,” activist Milind Chavan said.
Furthermore, VVMC’s oxygen requirements are reportedly not being met. While the corporation needs around 25 metric tons (MT) of oxygen, it is only receiving 16 MT from the state.
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