HYDERABAD: While sounding a word of caution about the second wave being more severe, with the
Covid-19 virus undergoing several mutations, health authorities on Saturday maintained that imposing a weekend or night curfew wasn’t being thought of at the moment.
They said that a lockdown, if implemented, would result in more loss of life due to starvation than due to the coronavirus. However, stressing that lakhs of people have already lost livelihood, people were asked to lockdown themselves.
Speaking at a press conference,
Telangana’s director of public health, Dr G Srinivasa Rao, however, urged people to take all precautions for the next four to six weeks while advising them to postpone weddings and restrict the celebration of festivals to their homes.
Elaborating on the rapid spread this time around Dr Rao, shared the example of a district along the Maharashtra border where a gathering of 30 led to the place becoming a Covid hotspot. “On the March 26, 20 people from Maharashtra came to the border district for a festival.
Along with them, 30 people from the district celebrated together. On the April 4 all five of them were tested for suspected corona infection. Then, 34 people contracted the virus through them. By April 6, 433 people had been infected with the virus. In a matter of 12 days the biggest cluster in the state was formed covering four villages,” said the official adding that the situation in the state is critical.
Stating that corona surveillance has been intensified in places where elections were conducted or will be held, like the
Nagarjunasagar assembly constituency, he stressed the need to avoid gatherings. “It is no longer appropriate, be it for celebrations, festivals or elections.
People need to take utmost care up to June as the second wave will be peaking during this time. For the first time in the country, more than two lakh cases have been reported. The number of cases in Telangana is close to 5,000. There is a risk of further increase in cases in the days to come,” said Dr Rao.
Officials also advised against the indiscriminate use of Remdesivir. “The antiviral drug Remdesivir should be given in the first week to patients with moderate to severe Covid-19 symptoms and not all patients,” said Dr M Raja Rao, superintendent, Gandhi Hospital.