After 112 days, no Covid death in Kolkata – Times of India

KOLKATA: For the first time in 112 days, no Covid death was reported in Kolkata on Saturday while the number of fresh cases stood at 62. The last time the city reported zero Covid casualty was on March 27, just before the start of the second wave. Thereafter, the daily toll in the metropolis kept climbing till it touched 44 — once on May 12 and again on May 29.
The number of daily casualties started declining in end-May and since the third week of June, it has been in single digits and dropping steadily. Experts say this is a good sign and indicative of the fact that vaccination has worked and the city is “inching towards herd immunity”.
The city has recorded a total of 4,956 Covid deaths Jsince the beginning of the pandemic.
“Kolkata has been doing well ever since vaccination started. The city now has less than 1,000 active cases, which is lower than the figures of a few districts, including Nor-th 24 Parganas and Darjeeling. The city is now in a good space since a large section of residents has been inoculated and we are inching towards herd immunity. In terms of the number of vaccines administered, Kolkata now ranks second in the country, ” said professor Diptendra Sarkar of the Institute of Post-Graduate Medical Education & Research (IPGMER).
According to internal medicine consultant Arindam Biswas, the virus has been effectively countered after the second wave. “While vaccination has helped in preventing transmission, the virus has lost some its sting. With more vaccinations, the situation will continue improve. But let’s remember that the virus is still there and letting our guard down could again activate it. The longer the virus remains, the faster and more it will mutate,” Biswas said. He stressed that this was the time when Covid norms should be adhered to very strictly.
Sarkar, however, said it was difficult to predict how long the good phase will last. “The third wave could hit by August-September. But we should now be looking at the number of deaths and not the number of cases. Vaccination has been able to pull down the figure in Kolkata,” he said.