After setting up quarantine centres and dedicated COVID-19 care centres and hospitals, both private and civic, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has now started similar facilities in the hostels of two private educational institutes in the civic jurisdiction. “The hostels of Sinhagad College of Engineering and National Institute of Construction Management and Research (NICMAR) are being used as “pre-isolation centre” for suspected COVID-19 patients," said a civic officer. The hostel at Sinhagad College of Engineering can accommodate 285 persons while the one at NICMAR has a much bigger capacity as it can house 1,236 persons. The PMC has also set up pre-isolation facilities at Laygude Hospital, Khedekar Hospital, Sanas Sports ground and Rakshaknagar Krida Sankul building, taking the total quarantine capacity to 1,814. The civic body is also setting up other quarantine facilities and aims to increase its capacity first to 8,000 beds and eventually to 25,000 beds, as it plans to convert marriage halls into such centres. Suspected patients of coronavirus are kept at pre-isolation centres, where their swab samples are collected for tests. "If the test is negative, than they are sent home and asked to remain in home quarantine. If they test positive, then the patient is kept in institutional quarantine, for which the PMC has set up separate centres in civic hospitals and a few other buildings." Patients with mild symptoms are admitted in dedicated COVID-19 health centres while those with severe symptoms are treated at dedicated hospitals such as Sassoon, Naidu, Symbiosis and Bharati hospitals. For the pre-isolation centre at Sinhagad College, PMC has deployed a team of 13 staffers, who have to ensure hygienic conditions and proper food during their stay.
