Lucknow: Until just a few days ago, Uttar Pradesh’s Agra was being mentioned alongside Rajasthan’s Bhilwara as having developed a model strategy to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. Union health ministry spokesperson Lav Agarwal too had praised Yogi Adityanath’s government for the strategy on 11 April. But since then, the Agra model has come under the scanner for its effectiveness, as the number of Covid-19 cases has continuously risen.
As on 21 April, 295 cases have been reported from Agra, the highest among the districts of UP, up from 103 on 11 April, even though the administration has increased the number of ‘hotspot’ zones and tracing contacts of those afflicted. Saturday, 18 April, saw 55 cases reported in the district — the highest single-day figure for any UP district.
Figures released by Agra district administration Tuesday state that the number of active cases is 257, while six people have died and 32 have been discharged. The administration has tested over 4,000 samples, with the testing numbers too showing a rapid increase in the last week, as pointed out by District Magistrate Prabhu N. Singh in a tweet.
Present lockdown with more restrictions to continue till 3rd May
Except essential services all offices to remain close #Civid19 Updates attached
SNM started Haemodialysis facility for #Covid19 positive patients in it’s isolation ward ; one patient haemodialysis done pic.twitter.com/9ULHFK0JIv
— Prabhu N Singh (@PrabhuNs_) April 19, 2020
UP’s top health official Dr Rukum Kesh, the Director General of Medical and Health Services, told ThePrint that while the increase in the number of cases is “indeed a matter of grave concern”, the testing rate has also increased. “More than 60 hotspots have been earmarked and they are being sealed and sanitised,” he said.
Dr D. Himanshu of Lucknow’s King George Medical University agreed. “If the testing rate increases, positive cases will also increase for some days. It isn’t something to worry too much about. The numbers will fall once testing gets completed,” he said.
ThePrint also reached Agra’s chief medical officer and the DM to ask why the number of patients was rising, but their office staff said they were not ready to talk in this regard. This report will be updated when they respond.
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Cluster of cases and the ‘Agra model’
According to some media reports, Agra was the first place in India where a cluster of coronavirus cases was detected — there were six patients, all linked to a man who was Delhi’s first reported case.
The six cases were reported on 3 March — two sons of a shoe trader returned from Italy and passed the infection on to five persons, including three family members. Meanwhile, an NRI returning from the Netherlands had passed it on to his 76-year-old grandmother, who later died of a heart attack while undergoing treatment at the Sarojini Naidu Medical College.
The parents of this NRI were also identified as Covid-19-positive.
Soon after the first cluster of cases was detected, the administration formed 259 teams of two members each, who scouted over 1.6 lakh houses and collected around 1,000 samples. Each team visited around 100 houses a day, and doctors were available at nearby dispensaries to provide consultation to those who showed symptoms.
Then, the district administration worked on identifying epicentres, mapped the impact of the confirmed cases, and traced their contacts. This plan seemed to work for a few days, earning praise, but later on, the situation started worsening again.
Tablighi Jamaat, and hospitals turn hotspots
After the Tablighi Jamaat incident in Delhi’s Nizamuddin came to light, the administration carried out a search operation in Agra’s mosques to identify people who had attended the congregation, and found 28 of them. Several persons who had come in contact with them were also examined, and some of them were already found infected with the novel coronavirus.
Dr Kesh, the UP health services DG, said the Tablighi Jamaat event was a contributing factor behind the rapid rise in the number of cases. “All the people who came in contact with them are turning out to be positive. The administration is searching for each one of them, and they are being quarantined. We hope the situation will be back to normal soon,” he said.
Another big worry for the administration is that three of the district’s 62 hospitals — Mittal Nursing Home, Lady Loyal Hospital and Paras Hospital — are now completely sealed as many Covid-19 patients had come in contact with their staff.
Until now, 28 positive cases have been linked to Paras Hospital alone, and the district administration has registered an FIR against its director, Dr Arinjoy Jain, and manager S.P. Yadav, for concealing vital information.
The key case discovered at the hospital was of an old woman admitted for the treatment of asthma, who later turned out to be coronavirus-positive. All the medical staff who came in contact with the woman have been asked by the administration to quarantine themselves.
The hospital was then accused of providing inaccurate data related to patients and staff — it had reported a total number of 73, but when the administration ordered an evacuation, it was found to have 220 patients and staff, of which 28 were Covid-19-positive.
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Opposition raises questions
However, the increase in cases has led to a political slugfest, with opposition parties saying the government’s claims are false.
UP Congress chief Ajay Kumar Lallu said: “In the name of ‘Agra model’, the entire focus is on branding, but the ground reality is quite different. Even medical staff members are falling prey to this virus.
“Amid this epidemic, when health workers mean everything to us, their lives are being compromised. The number of tests is also too low, even though testing is the most important aspect,” Lallu said.
Senior Samajwadi Party leader Juhi Singh also questioned the ‘Agra model’, saying since this nomenclature was adopted, positive cases have only increased instead of falling. “What kind of model is this?” she asked.
But Manoj Mishra, spokesperson for the ruling BJP in UP, said the opposition should understand that this is not the right time for politics. “Coronavirus is a pandemic; it’s not a political issue. The central and state governments are trying their best in every way,” Mishra said.
“Our CM, ministers, officials and corona warriors are working tirelessly to fight against this pandemic. Because of their efforts, cases are not increasing here as much as in other countries,” he said.
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Agra cases could have been increased due to more testing. However, it will keep up on rising unless Govt. looks into supplying the essentials at home. Complete lockdown has been imposed in Agra, numbers are shared to get essentials delivered at home. However, there are neither sufficient supplies, nor they are being delivered at home. People are standing in queues, and in closer contact. Govt. has to fix these issues before it starts biting us back.
This disease is very dangers for human being. Covid-19 virus is too much harmful for the living being in any case.
The positive cases are rising because the no. of testings have increased. There can be many undetected suspect cases with muted symptoms. It is not fair to criticize the local Govt for rise in cases. Severe lockdown, tracing, agressive testing and then quarantine are the only solutions. No point in giving this issue a political or religious colour.