GURUGRAM: The city’s weekly Covid-19 positivity rate has dipped to 1% this week, the lowest in the past eight months. At 2%, Gurugram’s overall positivity rate this month is also the lowest since May, when it stood at 11.3%. This sharp decline is due to a steady dip in new cases in the past four weeks, officials from the health department said.
Since January 15, the city has been getting less than 50 new cases daily, falling from an average of 58 new cases in the first week of January to 23 in the fourth week.
Gurugram has been one of Haryana’s worst-hit districts with its overall positivity rate going as high as 13.8% in June. It then dipped to 8.9% in July, followed by 7.1% in August. In November, the positivity rate rose to 9.8%, declining to 8% the following month and to 2% in January.
A similar trend has been witnessed in daily cases in the state, with the average declining from 221 in the first week of January to 95 in the fourth week. “Haryana has been able to flatten the curve as daily cases have come down in January, leading to a decline in the positivity rate,” said Rajeev Arora, Haryana additional chief secretary (health).
According to health department records, Gurugram reported 717 new cases in May, followed by 4,444 in June, 3,603 in July and 2,751 in August. In September, 8,586 cases were added to the city’s tally, which rose to 9,091 in October and 19,065 in November before dipping to 6,704 cases in December. This month, 1,260 cases have been reported till January 28.
“We are expecting cases to go down further next month. There is a likelihood of a slight surge in the beginning of March, when the city will witness a change in weather conditions,” Gurugram chief medical officer Virender Yadav said.
“At present, the daily positivity rate is 0.6% after a high of 16% on November 16. Gurugram’s overall positivity rate is the lowest since May as the city is also getting less than 50 new cases daily,” he added.
The city has reported nine Covid-related deaths so far in January, also the lowest compared to the past eight months. Gurugram accounts for 352 of the state’s 3,014 deaths due to the pandemic. It recorded its first death on May 21. With 86 deaths, June witnessed the highest Covid toll, followed by November, which saw 80 patients succumbing to the infection.
From 0.5% in May, the city’s case fatality rate (CFR) rose to an all-time high of 1.8% in June, then steadily declined in the next few months. While it currently stands at 0.5%, Haryana’s CFR is 1.1%.
On Friday, 39 people tested positive for Covid in the city, taking the tally to 58,158. Officials said 43 patients recovered on the day, taking the total number of recoveries to 57,422. No one succumbed to the infection on Wednesday. Gurugram has a total of 380 active cases, and 345 of the patients are in home isolation.
