Telangana: Tribals isolate themselves in forests after testing positive for coronavirus

JAYASHANKAR-BHUPALPALLY: The plight of scores of tribals, who have been isolating themselves in the forests near Yatnaram village in Mahamutharam mandal by erecting tents for the past few days, came to light on Thursday when members of an NGO were distributing groceries in the area.

The tribals were seen living inside makeshift tents and cooking in an open area inside the forest, located away from the human settlement. When the visitors asked them the reason for isolating themselves, they said that they had tested positive for Covid-19 and to prevent further spread of the virus, they decided to isolate themselves outside the village. They said that they were left to fend for themselves.

After the issue came to the notice of the district administration, Collector Krishna Aditya, along with a team of officials comprising Mandal Special Officer Sudheer Kumar, MRO Satish Kumar, MPDO Pedda Anjaneyulu and Medical Officer Gopinath, reached the spot and shifted the tribals to a Covid isolation centre, situated on the premises of a nearby government primary school, set up for isolating and treating tribals who contracted the virus.

According to officials, Covid cases have been on the rise in the village for the past three to four days and that 14 tribals from seven families in Yatnaram decided to isolate themselves by erecting tents near open wells in the forest.

The officials convinced the patients and shifted them to the isolation centre, after arranging food and medical supplies to treat them there. Officials have urged the people of the village to isolate themselves at their homes if feasible, or to make use of the isolation and quarantine centres set up for the purpose by the administration, until they fully recovered. Members of Sanjeevani Seva Samithi distributed essential commodities to the tribals earlier in the day.

COVID CASES ON THE RISE
Covid cases have been on the rise in the village for the past three to four days and that 14 tribals from seven families in Yatnaram decided to isolate themselves by erecting tents near open wells in the forest, to prevent their family members from contracting the virus