Vizag sees dip in Covid-19 positive cases

Visakhapatnam: Even as corona positive cases continue to grow in several parts of the state and the country, it paints a picture of contrast when it comes to Visakhapatnam.

Initially, Visakhapatnam made eyebrows raise by witnessing a surge in Covid-19 positive cases. Later, it bucked the trend and started seeing a dip when the other districts saw an unusual spurt in the count, Guntur, Kurnool and Nellore districts in particular.

The district administration has swung into action to contain the spread of the pandemic with special focus paid on identifying foreign returnees, tracing their contacts and quarantining them with immediate effect.

One of the primary reasons for the rise in number of positive cases is due to the infection spreading to the family members (primary contacts) from the patient. This has intensified the contact tracing exercise. Keeping this in view, the district administration has increased the number of quarantine facilities, including Visakha Institute of Medical Sciences and Government Hospital for Mental Care. Even a couple of Kendriya Vidyalayas have been identified to convert into quarantine centres. This apart, support has also been sought from the Navy and East Coast Railway to strengthen the combat strategies against the pandemic by sharing a part of their infrastructure.

At present, the district is armed with over 2,160 isolation and 3,372 quarantine beds in various facilities.

The surge in the positive cases has seen an all-time high when people started returning to their native places after attending the mass congregation held in Nizamuddin. Subsequently, the State had registered double digit growth in the coronavirus positive cases from the single digit thus far. The Tablighi Jamaat incident has reportedly led to an unexpected spurt in positive cases across several districts in Andhra Pradesh, except Srikakulam and Vizianagaram that recorded nil cases so far. Even in Visakhapatnam, the coronavirus positive cases reached 20 on April 6.

Thankfully, there is no fresh case registered in the district after it had hit 20. There seems to be a valid reason behind the fall in the count. The preparedness of the district administration in the form of arranging beds and sealing the red zones, including Kancharapalem, Thatichetlapalem, Dondaparthi, Railway New Colony, Gajuwaka and Venkatapuram in Bheemunipatnam, seem to have paid off.

As on Wednesday, a total of 1,223 samples were collected for coronavirus testing in the district. Of them, as many as 1,155 turned negative. However, the results of 48 tests are awaited. The district has so far recorded 20 positive cases. Of them, 10 persons have been discharged after getting completely recovered and the rest are undergoing treatment.

While the district authorities heave a sigh of relief with the present corona statistics, the Opposition party leaders allege that the possibility of hiding the exact count of positive cases in Visakhapatnam cannot be ruled out as the state government is reportedly more focused on conducting the local body polls followed by the capital shift.