Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee had said on Saturday that the Covid test positivity rate had come down to less than 20% from a high of 33%.
While the number of daily cases of Covid-19 has dropped in Bengal, cases of mucormycosis or black fungus are gradually rising.
The number of Covid-19 cases in West Bengal dropped by half after two weeks of restrictions, prompting the Mamata Banerjee administration to allow some relaxations on Monday.
Data shared by the state government revealed that on May 31, at least 10,137 new cases were registered, less than half of the 20,846 new cases recorded on May 14—a single day record.
On Saturday chief minister Mamata Banerjee said the test positivity rate, defined as the percentage of positive people among all tested, had come down to less than 20% from a high of 33%. On Monday, the rate was at 17%.
Following the developments, the government on Monday announced some relaxations including allowing stand-alone shops, including those selling liquor, to operate for three hours between 12pm to 3pm from Tuesday.
“The daily count of Covid-19 cases and the positivity rate has dropped following restrictions imposed by the government from May 16. We shouldn’t let our guards down. Restrictions are still in place even though some relaxations have been given,” said a senior official of the state government.
On May 16, the state government imposed several restrictions effective till May 30. All conveyances – trains, buses and Kolkata Metro – were shut down, government and private offices were closed, and markets and retail shops timings were restricted for three hours in the morning. Night activities between 9 pm and 5 am were prohibited.
Later, the state extended the near-lockdown restrictions to June 15, providing some relaxations to the jute and construction sector.
While on one hand the daily cases of Covid-19 have dropped, cases of mucormycosis or black fungus are gradually rising across the state, officials said.
While on May 21, the state had information of only around four cases of mucormycosis with one death, the total number of cases, including suspected cases, has now shot up to 60.
“Till Monday, the state has recorded 24 confirmed cases and 36 suspected cases [of black fungus]. While three patients with confirmed disease have died, at least eight [others] with suspected infection have died too, taking the total death toll to 11,” said a senior health official.
