Darjeeling district is witnessing a good fall in the number of daily Covid-19 cases. Health experts, however, warned that there should be no room for complacency and people should not lower their guard and still follow all Covid-19 protocols, especially when the third wave of the virus is widely anticipated.

According to the health department, the district logged 87 cases, and 21 in the Siliguri Municipal Corporation area, including the 14 wards that fall in Jalpaiguri district, on 3 July, while the figures were 88 and 40, respectively, on 4 July.  Seventy-six cases were reported in the district and 30 in the corporation area on 5 July. The district reported 79 new cases today, while 25 cases were found in the SMC area.

Three cases were found in Darjeeling Municipality, six in Sukna, two in Kurseong Municipality, two in Bikanbari, two in Sukhia Pokhari, five in Takdah, one in Kharibari, 19 in Matigara, seven in Naxalbari, and 10 in Phansidewa. Also today, 106 patients recovered either in home isolation or government health facilities in the district, the sources added.

“We are observing a declining trend of Covid-19 cases. According to the directives of the government, we are following multi-pronged approaches like setting up of micro containment zones, monitoring patients under home isolation, and sanitization. Those steps contributed to bringing down the number,” said Darjeeling District Magistrate S Ponnambalam.

Noted physician and cardiologist of north Bengal Dr Sekhar Chakraborty, who is observing the Covid-19 trend, also said there had been a dip in cases in the past seven days.

“People should not drop the guard and rigorously follow the Covid-appropriate behaviour, otherwise there could again be a sharp spike in the cases,” Dr Chakraborty warned today. The in-charge of the Covid19 laboratory at the Viral Research & Diagnostic Laboratory (VRDL) and faculty of the department of microbiology at the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital, Dr Santanu Hazra, observed that the positivity rate in Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Jalpaiguri districts and parts of Alipurduar district had gone down below 10 percent.

The VRDL conducts the RT-PCT Covid19 tests. The positivity rate is a measure of the number of samples that test positive out of all samples tested in a day. According to health department officials, there was also a sharp fall in the number of daily deaths of people who test positive for Covid-19 and who are undergoing treatment at different health facilities in the district.

According to the health department sources, around four Covid patients died at the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital today.