Regular surge in the number of Covid-19 deaths and affected patients remained unabated in Bengal. With the report of yet another death and two new cases, the toll shot up to seven, and the number of patients reached 37 today in the state.

The 67-year-old died at a private hospital off the E.M. Bypass late in the evening. Earlier in the day, a 57-year-old owner of a fast food stall at Belghoria died at a private hospital in the area, raising the figure to seven giving a clear indication of the sharp rise in coronavirus mortality rate in Bengal as compared to other states.

He was admitted to the hospital on 23 March showing COVID-19 symptoms like fever, cough and cold with respiratory distress. However, he had no travel history anywhere across the states in the country or abroad affected by the viral disease.

He had diabetes and had been undergoing dialysis procedure in phases, and his swab sample tested at the National Institute of Communicable Disease (NICD) laboratory inside the Beliaghata ID Hospital positive after he was admitted to the private hospital at Belghoria.

Medical staff, including two doctors and nurses who attended to him, have been quarantined at the hospital for observation. The family members have also been advised homequarantine. On Tuesday night, two coronavirus deaths were reported at the state-run NRS Medical College Hospital and a private hospital in the Golabari area of Howrah separately.

A 62-year-old resident of Ultadanga area in the city died of the disease at NRS Hospital. He was brought to the hospital with COVID-19 symptoms and his swab sample sent by NRS hospital authorities to the NICD laboratory on Tuesday.

The test was found positive at the lab after he died. In another case, a 52-year-old man of Mullickphatak area in Howrah close to the district administrative offices of DM and Howrah Municipal Corporation passed away at a private hospital at Salkia in the northern part of the city on Tuesday night.

A 48-year-old woman of Salkia died of the viral disease at Howrah District Hospital early morning same day. The number of affected patients, including the six deceased, went up to 37 with reports of two more coronavirus positive cases in Hooghly district today. The two patients, aged 49 and 50 respectively, were admitted to the state-run Walsh hospital in Serampore in the district. On Tuesday, 15 coronavirus cases had been reported in different parts of the state.

The state health department seems jittery because of reports of confirmatory tests of a few patients. For instance, a 54-year-old male patient died at government M R Bangur Hospital at Tollygunge while he was under observation at the isolation ward at the hospital.

He was taken to the hospital with fever, breathlessness with cough and cold after he returned to Kolkata from Puri reportedly on 11 March. His swab sample collected at M R Bangur Hospital has been sent to the SSKM hospital laboratory for a confirmatory test.

But he died before the report came in and this has spread panic among patients and staff at M R Bangur. The hospital authorities have decided to preserve the body following the WHO guidelines on disposal of a Covid-19 death case until the test report from SSKM hospital lab comes to them. The same crisis happened for the 62-year-old deceased at N R S Hospital.