85-year-old...

Two drivers of the family and two watchmen of the apartment also need to be examined for Covid-19 as they were close to the family and would get food from them daily. They are under observation by the civic authority and the police.

In the meantime, Saifee Hospital is putting in place a Covid-19 policy for the hospital. Dr Muffazal Lakdawala, a bariatric surgeon from the hospital, said, “The COVID-19 response team is planning to start by tomorrow itself.”

Dr Vernon Desa, director (medical governance and clinical compliance), Saifee Hospital, in a statement said, “Maharashtra State, Health Vigilance Department, which reports directly to the chief minister, has been informed that the doctor underwent a CT SCAN and was diagnosed with Covid-19. The surgeon was transferred to the special isolation facility at PD Hinduja Hospital, where he subsequently died. All containment and surveillance measures have been implemented to ensure the safety of our staff, patients, and visitors. Saifee Hospital reiterates that the hospital is fully operational.” stranded people,” he said.

Meanwhile, both chief minister and public health minister urged private doctors to keep their clinics open, so that people don’t have to face inconvenience. Tope said medicine being a “noble” profession, doctors should continue to practice without fear.

“OPD, emergency medical services have been stopped... This is not right. There are other illnesses apart from Covid-19. Where will people go for deliveries or if some one suffers a heart attack?… Don’t show insensitivity in times of crisis,” Tope told private medical practitioners. He cited an example of a couple in Ahmednagar who were looking for a paediatrician to treat their son, but no clinics were open. Tope also said that the state is trying procure N95 masks and personal protective equipment (PPE) kits from manufacturers for all its health-care workers and doctors. He added that blood donation camps should be carried out, while keeping social distancing measures in place.

State health officials said of the 3,493 suspected people with symptoms of cough and flu, samples of 3,059 have tested negative so far. The state government has also released 22 patients, who completely recovered after testing positive. At present, nearly 250 suspected patients are admitted in different hospitals, 1,045 are quarantined at government facilities set up at various places and 16,513 are home quarantined across Maharashtra.

Thackeray also directed 190 Shiv Bhojan centres to remain open during the state-wide lockdown to serve meals to the ‘poor and needy’. Thackeray has also directed to keep the centres open for an additional hour than the two-hour, during which thalis are served at ₹10. A senior official of food, civil supplies and consumer protection department said that the state will serve 1 lakh lunch meals daily. “As apart from the social distancing measure, we are allowing them to pack meals and sell it. The state had planned to increase the number of thalis from 36,000 to 1 lakh from April 1. Now, in a day or two, centres will be operational and poor and needy, daily-wage labours will get a one-time meal, “the official said.

The state BJP unit, which held a meeting on Friday to brainstorm over various ways to assist people during the outbreak of coronavirus, has decided to feed at least 20 lakh people in Maharashtra. The meeting of all party MLAS, MPS as well as Union ministers like Nitin Gadkari, Piyush Goyal, Prakash Jawadekar was held via audio bridge.

The party has decided to mobilise support systems to feed 20 lakh people. The party unit has also decided to ensure sufficient supply of sanitisers, stop its black marketing, take measures to make social distancing successful.

Meanwhile, one of the two Thane patients who tested positive is a 38-year-old with a travel history to the US. The person, a resident of Kasarvadavli, had tested positive for the virus on March 27 at Kasturba Hospital.

An officer from TMC said, “The person landed in Mumbai on March 21 from USA and had self-quarantined himself in a Mumbai-based five star hotel. He started showing symptoms and got admitted in Kasturba Hospital on March 26. His results came positive on March 27. He did not come to Thane, so there is less possibility of him coming in contact with any person from Thane. Still, we have sent a team to his house.”

The corporation has also sealed the private laboratory in Naupada area where a patient from Parsik Nagar had got himself tested. The person is still not ready to reveal the names of people he came in contact with,

The corporation has screened 1,800 patients till March 27, of which four are positive and 15 results are still awaited.

Later on Friday, the Union health ministry said that two public sector units (PSUS) will begin arranging for 40,000 ventilators.

“Ventilator shortage has been an issue that the government has been closely monitoring, and several steps are being taken to ensure hospitals are well equipped and face no shortage of ventilators that are essential in managing critical Covid-19 patients,” said Lav Aggarwal, joint secretary, Union health ministry, adding that the acquisition is likely to take a couple of months.

A ventilator augments breathing function for a person when lungs are compromised, a condition common to all Covid-19 patients for whom the disease progresses into serious stages. In countries such as Italy and now in New York, a lack of ventilators is feared to be leading to many fatalities that may have otherwise been saved.

Improving resources such as medical devices while also ramping up close monitoring of the outbreak are among strategies known as mitigation and suppression — both of which are crucial for countries to “flatten the curve” of peak health care demand so that the number of patients does not exceed the available hospital and ICU beds.

According to estimates by Indian doctors and medical equipment industry professionals, India at present has 40,000 of the breathing machines — a number experts say will be woefully inadequate in case of a surge in Covid-19 infections.

According to trends seen in China, 5% of all Covid-19 patients need to be admitted to ICUS with acute breathing problems requiring ventilators for life support.

“The BEL (Bharat Electronics Limited) has been asked to manufacture about 30,000 ventilators and the other PSU approached for the job will be giving us 10,000 units,” said Aggarwal.

India this month lifted controls on producing medical ventilators. According to a government communication reviewed by Mint, the Centre plans to ask all interested manufacturing companies, including automakers, to start producing ventilators.

The country has also prohibited export of ventilators from the country. In addition to the 40,000 ordered on Friday, the government placed an order for 1,200 ventilators

“Government is taking all necessary measures; there is no need to panic,” said Aggarwal.