Niwari is the last Covid-negative bastion in MP

Bhopal: As lockdown 4.0 comes to an end, almost each and every part of Madhya Pradesh stands bruised and battered by coronavirus. The only exception to this is the state’s youngest district - Niwari - where not a single corona-positive case has been found so far.

Till May 28, two districts of MP- Niwari and Katni - were without a single case of corona.

But on Thursday, a nine-year-old girl was found corona-positive in Katni and now only Niwari is left free from Covid-19 infection. At least 30 districts in MP have 10 corona positive cases or more.

Niwari used to be a part of Tikamgarh district, and on October 1, 2018 it was separated and formed into a new district. It became 52nd district of the state. Total population of district is around 4 lakh. It covers 281 villages. Under the district, 56 panchayats of Prithvipur tehsil, 54 panchayats of Niwari, 17 panchayats of Orchha are included.

Officials said the efforts are to ensure Niwari remains corona-free and other districts also come out of the grip of pandemic. Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Friday in order to ensure that no community spread prevails anywhere in the state, all the collectors should ensure intensive survey, contact tracing, testing as well as strict lockdown in infected areas with all other precautions.

Total number of corona-positives cases in MP on Friday was 7685. So far, 334 people have lost their lives due to pandemic in the state.

Indore has the maximum of 3431 total corona number cases followed by Bhopal 1512 and Ujjain has 660 positives cases so far. Till now, 129 people lost lives in Indore, 56 in Bhopal and 55 people died in Ujjain.

As a sign of relief, MP’s recovery rate has risen to 55 per cent and mortality rate has dropped to 4.3 per cent. It’s still higher than the national mortality average of 2.9 per cent. MP’s recovery rate is, however, better than the national average of around 49 per cent.