BHOPAL: The threat of coronavirus's community transmission seems to be looming on two cities of Madhya Pradesh, which include Indore and the adjoining religious city Ujjain.
Four persons, including two COVID-19 positive patients and two suspected coronavirus patients have died in hospitals of Indore and Ujjain over the last 24 hours.
While a 65-year-old coronavirus positive woman from Ujjain district died on Wednesday afternoon at the MRTB Hospital, a 65-year-old COVID-19 positive male patient from Ranipura area of Indore city died at the same hospital on Thursday.
A 47-year-old suspected COVID-19 patient from Ujjain also died at the same government hospital on Thursday. The test report of the concerned patient’s samples are not out, state health department sources said.
In Ujjain, a 55-year-old suspected COVID-19 patient, who was admitted at a private hospital for the last four days, died on Thursday.
Meanwhile, since Tuesday late night, nine people from Indore (including the 35-year-old man who died on Thursday) and the 65-year-old woman from Ujjain (who died on Wednesday) have so far been tested positive for the deadly virus.
“Out of the ten positive patients in Indore (including the two deceased), seven are middle aged, three others, including the 65-year-old woman who died on Wednesday, are aged above 60,” Indore district Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) Dr Praveen Jadia said on Thursday.
But with none of the patients from Indore or Ujjain having any foreign travel history or any history of travelling to any Indian state having reported COVID-19 positive cases or deaths, the sources of the deadly viral infection remains undetected, making both the cities vulnerable to Coronavirus’s Community Transmission stage.
The Indore district CMHO said on Thursday, “It won’t be appropriate to say that Indore is in the third stage of the Coronavirus, but yes it’s certainly in the advanced or upper stage of Stage II or Local Transmission stage.”
Two of the deceased lived in larger KD Gate area, while the 47-year-old man who died at a hospital in Indore hospital hailed from Ujjain’s Rishni Nagar area, which is around three km from the KD Gate area.
“The local administration is enforcing total curfew in all areas of Ujjain to ensure that the deadly virus doesn’t enter the third or community transmission phase,” Ujjain district CMHO Dr Anusuya Gawli told The New Indian Express.
So far 20 COVID-19 positive cases have been reported from across Madhya Pradesh, including maximum nine in Indore, six in Jabalpur, two in Bhopal and one each from Ujjain, Shivpuri and Gwalior.