The case fatality rate (CFR) of 1.2 per cent in the last two weeks in Mysuru district is now close to the target of one per cent and the positivity rate (the number of cases per 100 tests) has come down to 2 per cent. The COVID-19 positivity was 20 per cent in September and the turnaround was achieved in less than two months.
Deputy Commissioner Rohini Sindhuri on Wednesday said Mysuru is performing best or among the best on all parameters of COVID-19 pandemic. This has happened because of the systematic approach and untiring efforts of all those concerned, she added.
With 6,000 daily tests, Mysuru is doing the highest number of tests per day after Bengaluru Bruhat Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). Also, the Mysuru District COVID-19 War Room is now a model for all and all districts had sent teams to learn and replicate the model in their respective areas with regard to pandemic management.
Ms. Sindhuri said 4,208 persons had been fined for not wearing mask and flouting social distance rules, which is again highest after the enforcement by the BBMP in Bengaluru.
On the advice of the government for improving contact tracing since Mysuru was reporting the highest number of cases after Bengaluru and was also identified as a COVID-19 hotspot, the district administration has ensured 100 per cent contact tracing within 36 hours. As of now, 12 contacts are being traced per patient.
In Mysuru, the RT-PCR testing infrastructure has been expanded with the Department of Microbiology of the Mysore Medical College and Research Institute (MMCRI) at the K.R. Hospital receiving an advanced COVID-19 testing facility, which is also giving faster results of the swab tests done. Within 24 hours, the results are being made available and no swabs are now being sent to Bengaluru like in the past for the tests.
The VRDL has been carrying out the swab tests using the RT-PCR method since March this year and it has been doing nearly 2,500-3,000 swab tests a day. So far, it has done over one lakh swab tests. The new testing system, also called the liquid handling system, was sent to the MMCRI so as to strengthen the PCR testing and give results within 24 hours.
Steps were taken to ramp up PCR testing across Mysuru with about 4,000 swab tests a day since early this month following guidelines on confining COVID-19 tests under the PCR method instead of Rapid Antigen Test (RAT). The Deputy Commissioner on Wednesday said the number of tests per day had been increased to 6,000.
