Fresh COVID-19 cases surged again in Kozhikode district on Saturday when 2,105 people tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 here. District Collector N. Tej Lohit Reddy has urged people to be cautious in the coming three days when lockdown restrictions will be relaxed in view of Bakrid.
According to District Medical Officer V. Jayashree, 2,087 cases of local transmission of the infection and 13 others without a known source of infection have been recorded. The daily test positivity rate is 14.42% when 14,821 samples were tested. Kozhikode Corporation accounted for 261 locally acquired infections, Olavanna 78, Payyoli 57, Vadakara 52, Koduvally 50, Feroke, Peruvayal and Kodiyathur 44 each, Atholi 43, and Koyilandy, Thalakkulathur, and Nanminda 41 cases each. As many as 1,406 people recovered from the infection. The active caseload in the district rose to 18,440.
Mr. Reddy said that overcrowding and mingling would lead to the infection spreading more in Kozhikode. Physical distancing, and use of face masks and hand sanitisers should be enforced by shop owners and staff. He said action would be initiated against those who did not follow the protocol. The police would keep a watch on unnecessary travel and seize vehicles. S.M. Street would be under surveillance. Mr. Reddy urged people to use shops in their own locality and not to travel to other places. Residents of areas where the test positivity rate was above 15% too should remain in their localities, he added.
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Vaccination for pregnant women
‘Mathrukavacham’, the vaccination drive for pregnant women, began in the district on Saturday and 1,319 persons were given the first dose. The injection would be free at all government hospitals on Wednesdays between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Registration can be done with the help of ASHA workers.