Many villages go for self quarantine in Andhra Pradesh

Visakhapatnam: Colonies go into quarantine voluntarily in rural as well as urban areas as port city terrified of coronavirus observes complete lockdown.

After the enforcement of Janata Curfew on March 22, citizens across the district follow precautionary measures to contain the spread of the pandemic.

Till then, only some states were sealed as a part of the lockdown. Keeping the severity of the pandemic in view, the Central government announced countrywide lockdown.

Despite the implementation of the nationwide lockdown and enforcement of Section 144 CrPc in Visakhapatnam, not all adhered to lockdown protocol, especially from the urban areas as they were seen heading to markets in groups.

But, when it comes to rural areas, it was a different scenario altogether. Those residing in villages were more conscious about the seriousness of the novel coronavirus pandemic. This made them literally block the village borders by placing tyres, iron grills, thorny shrubs and artificial fencing.

Some of the locals in the villages continue to monitor those entering the villages from other places and plead with them to go back to their respective hometowns.

This kind of restriction is witnessed more in city outskirts and neighbourhoods such as Pendurthi, Gurramapalem, Gorapalli, Akkireddipalem and Anandapuram.

Similar pattern is being followed by the locals in some of the areas in urban limits, including Vepagunta, old Gopalapatnam and Adavivaram. Former president of old Gopalapatnam P. Shankara Rao, says, "Except for emergency purpose, we (colony residents) have restricted the movement by placing the iron grill at the entrance of the neighbourhood near railway crossing. This apart, colony association members take turns in keeping vigil on those entering the neighbourhood 24/7."

Though some of the educational institutional grounds have been converted into Rythu Bazaars, farmers who arrive from various hamlets to sell the produce find it difficult to get back to their homes.

"My neighbours and colony residents have been warning me against venturing into the city as there is a greater possibility of getting infected in crowded places.

It is a big task for me to convince them every time I return from the city after exhausting the produce in the market," says D Dharma, a farmer from Araku Valley.

If people across the district consider self-imposed quarantine as a serious preventive measure like some of the locals follow in villages, coronavirus could be contained in an effective manner and the 21-day lockdown would yield better results.