Swine flu toll in the city rose to 46 with confirmation of two more deaths on Thursday.
Kashinath Ghanshetty (40) and Shankaramma Taylor (56 ) died at government hospital on Wednesday but their H1N1 test reports became available only on Thursday, health officials said.
With the toll due to the influenza virus mounting day by day, the district and civic authorities have launched a screening drive in the city and rural areas.
All schools were being covered in the screening with the help from various agencies, according to District Collector Chandrakant Dalvi, officials said.
The health authorities were also exploring the possibility of engaging reliable private laboratories for testing of throat swabs of the suspected patients as the designated National Institute of Virology (NIV) was flooded by a continuous flow of samples, they added.
