Covid-19: Residents in containment zones dismayed by continuing ordeal in Coimbatore

COIMBATORE: The district recorded 270 fresh cases of Covid-19 on Wednesday, taking the total number of cases to 2,25,889. With 414 people getting discharged, the number of active cases was at 3,629.
The total number of people cured went up to 2,20,144, taking the recovery rate to 97.4%. The district however recorded eight deaths, the highest count in a week, taking the toll to 2,116.
Though daily fresh cases have reduced drastically to 5% of the peak and positivity rate to less than 3%, the health department is continuing to follow all Covid-19 prevention protocol, including earmarking containment zones.
At present, the district has 94 containment zones. Of them, 44 are spread across rural areas, including 10 in Sulur, nine in Karamadai, and six in Thudiyalur.
Residents in containment zones feel frustrated despite flattening of Covid curve and lifting of lockdown restrictions.
People in the containment zones keep testing positive within the 14-day period, thereby calling for further extension of the quarantine period. For instant, some residents of Serene Retirement home community at Idigarai are upset as they have been placed in containment zone since July 1 after a third person in their community tested positive.
However, while the gated community was under containment zone, another couple tested positive on July 5 and 6. On Tuesday, which is their 13th day in containment, two more people tested positive, taking the total number of residents infected from June-end to seven.
“The containment will not be lifted until July 27, which is the end of 14-day since last two positive results. And if someone else tests positive within the next 14 days, will it again be extended, how long is this to go on for?” one of the residents Gopalakrishnan said.
As they are in containment zones, some people are unable to visit doctors to check their blood sugar levels. “My wife needs to visit the doctor at least once a month. Our doctor opened his clinic only in June-end, but since we have been in containment from July 1, we have not visited him since May,” another resident said.
“If the containment zone measure is not working to eliminate fresh cases, shouldn’t the health department identify the source of infections and control it instead of just locking us up,” asked another resident.