More than 100 fresh Covid cases were reported from areas under the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) on Friday, while more than 25 cases were recorded in areas under the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC).
New Town reported more than 10 fresh cases of Covid-19 during the day, while more than 30 cases were reported from Rajarhat and Gopalpur, off New Town.
From Monday till Wednesday, only a dozen new cases were reported from New Town.
In Kolkata — which recorded 63 new cases on June 13, compared with the 100-plus on Friday — civic officials said the maximum number of cases were reported from Maniktala, Ballygunge and Bhowanipore.
The growing numbers are in line with the rest of the country that is witnessing a steady rise in Covid cases.
A BMC official said most of the new cases were reported from the BD and BF blocks in Salt Lake, Teghoria, Baguiati and Chinar Park.
Areas under the KMC and the BMC, as well as Rajarhat, Gopalpur and New Town have been categorised as Pink Zone by the state health department.
An official in the health department said the maximum number of daily new Covid cases in Bengal were being reported from Kolkata and North 24-Parganas.
The health department has started colour-mapping zones from where Covid-19 cases are being reported to note the trends across the state.
The three categories are pink, black and green. Areas with less than five Covid cases in a week are Black Zones and the ones with one or zero case are Green Zones.
The highest category is Pink Zone, from where 10 or more cases are reported in a week.
A KMC doctor blamed the spike on rampant violation of the mask mandate and the fact that social distancing has become impossible to follow in most places.
“Since social distancing is not possible anymore, we must wear masks, which form the first line of defence against Covid-19. There is a reluctance among most people to wear masks,” the doctor said.
A Salt Lake civic official said they had again started sanitising areas from where fresh coronavirus cases were being reported.
Banibrata Banerjee, mayoral council member in charge of health in the BMC, said: “We are carrying out sanitisation and are planning to start awareness programmes like before to ensure people wear masks.”
