Looming third wave delays Gandhi non-Covid services

HYDERABAD: Anticipating a localised Covid-19 outbreak in parts of the State in the light of Bonalu and Bakrid festivities, the resumption of non-Covid services in Gandhi Hospital will most likely be put off till the end of July. Though the hospital authorities had tentatively planned to reopen services between July 18 and 20, the Director of Medical Education has not given the go yet owing to the looming threat of a third wave. With the public ignoring Covid-19 protocols, doctors say that the next 10 days will be crucial for the State. “Currently, we have 380 Covid- 19 patients in Gandhi Hospital.

We will reopen non-Covid services only after this number drops to 200,” informed Dr Prabhkar Reddy, Gandhi Hospital’s nodal officer for Covid-19. Further, owing to continuous rise in cases in districts like Khammam, Nalgonda, Mancherial, Suryapet and Pedappalli, the number of fresh cases is steady. “Assuming 10 cases are reported each day, two of them are from Khammam alone.

The remainder are from Mancherial, Suryapet, etc, where the number of cases is declining at a slower rate,” he added. It may be recalled that Director of Public Health Dr G Srinivas Rao had issued a caution last week, ahead of the festivals. Meanwhile, IMA’s Telangana Chapter has raised alarm over another pressing issue which coincides with the festival season — the complete reopening of theaters. “We are concerned about the reopening of cinema halls, AC dining halls, pubs and bars because they are closed spaces with little ventilation. We request the State government to focus on this aspect, ahead of the imminent third wave,” said Dr B Narender Reddy, secretary of TS IMA.

746 NEW COVID CASES, 5 DEATHS IN STATE

Telangana detected 746 cases of Covid-19 from 1.20 lakh test samples on Monday. The State’s Covid tally now stands at 6.37 lakh. Nearly 729 individuals recovered from the disease, taking the active caseload to 9,836 cases, and five people lost their lives. Even as the GHMC reported the highest number of cases (71), Khammam recorded 61 cases, which is significantly higher for its population. The vaccination drive is progressing at a steady pace with second doses getting more priority. In the last three days, second dose administration has surpassed the first dose and accounts for nearly 60 percent of all the doses administered