0 active cases, Bhandara is 1st ‘Covid-free’ district in Maharashtra

NAGPUR: Bhandara district in Nagpur division on Friday officially became the first district in Maharashtra to become “Covid-free”. The lone under-treatment patient in the district for the last three days was declared recovered on Friday morning.
Bhandara has been reporting no new cases for the last three days despite conducting average 600 tests daily. It took 15 months for the district to get the “Covid-free” status.
The district was one of the worst-hit in the state during the second wave with more than 12,800 patients under treatment on April 18. It is a huge number for a rural and tribal dominated district with overall population less than 15 lakh. Bhandara district having limited medical facilities witnessed oxygen and hospital bed shortage during the second wave.
According to district colle-ctor Sandeep Kadam, ‘testing, tracing and treatment’ was the three-point formula they followed rigorously to achieve the “Covid-free” status.