A senior government doctorinvolved in the fight against COVID-19 and a 34-year-old man, both diagnosed with the diease, died at a hospital here on Sunday, sources at the facility said.The 60-year-old doctor, posted as assistant director health services (equipment and stores), was initially admitted to Beliaghata Infectious Diseases hospital and later shifted to a private hospital in Salt Lake on April 18, where he succumbed to the disease."After he tested positive for COVID-19, he was first taken to Beliaghata ID hospital and then to the Salt Lake private hospital. The doctor was suffering from respiratory distress and other co-morbidities and had been on ventilator since he was admitted to the hospital. He died at 1.20 am on Sunday," sources told PTI.Another patient from the city's Garden Reach area, who had tested positive for the disease earlier in the week, also died around 7 am at the same facility."The 34-year-old man was admitted to the hospital on April 23. He, too, had breathing problems and was put on ventilator. He died today morning," they added.After several calls made to senior government officials for more information on the two fatalities went unanswered, an official insisting that he not be named, said,"The reason behind the death of the ADHS is still under investigation".West Bengal has reported a total of 541 COVID-19 cases so far. Of them, 18 have succumbed to the disease, according to the state health department.The state government has constituted an audit committee of doctors which ascertains whether a patient of COVID-19 has died because of the coronavirus disease or a pre-existing ailment.According to Union health Ministry, the number of COVID-19 stricken patients in the state stands at 571.Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha said on Friday that the audit panel has certified that only 18 of 57 fatilities were caused "directly due to the disease".The rest 39 deaths were caused by other severe health conditions called comorbidities in medical parlance.
