Swine flu claims three more lives,toll mounts to 80

Attendance in Pune schools and colleges,which reopened on Monday after a fortnight’s gap,remained low as a result of the scare created by the pandemic,officials said.

The district administration appealed to the people to carry on with their daily chores without frequenting crowded places.

Many Ganesh festival pandals displayed tableaux highlighting the do’s and don’ts about the viral disease. In Mumbai,Sandeep Gaikwad,who was admitted to L K Hiranandani Hospital in suburban Powai on August 3,died late last night,a municipal corporation official said. He had tested positive for the virus.

38-year-old Nagaraj,who suffering from breathlessness,was admitted to Sagar Hospital in Bangalore on August 15 and he died early today,health officials said.

With the three deaths,the countrywide toll has risen to 80. Maharashtra now accounts for 43 fatalities– 25 in Pune,nine in Mumbai,five in Nashik,two in Aurangabad and one each in Dhule and Latur.

Sixteen people have died in Karnataka,seven in Gujarat,three each in Tamil Nadu,Chhattisgarh and Delhi and one each in Kerala,Goa,Rajasthan,Uttarakhand and Haryana.

As many as 186 confirmed cases of swine flu surfaced in various states in the last two days,taking the number of those afflicted to 3,095,Health Ministry officials said in Delhi.