COVID-19 cases in North Andhra region crossed the 11,000-mark, as health officials scrambled to arrange beds for new patients across Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts.
At least 9,000 beds need to be added at hospitals in the coming month as the existing number of 7,500 beds is insufficient to meet the rising number of positive cases. On average, 800 to 1,000 cases are being reported daily in the three districts. The total number of cases, which stood below 1,000 till the third week of June, rose to 5,000 by the end of June. Now, the situation has deteriorated further with the identification of nearly 6,000 new cases within three weeks.
According to government data, as of Friday morning, the total number of positive cases is 5,165 in Visakhapatnam district, while Srikakulam is in second place with 3,697 cases. Vizianagaram is relatively better placed with 2,177 cases.
Although nearly 3,000 patients were discharged from hospitals after treatment, many deaths have also been reportedly from the region. Two hundred patients have died of coronavirus, and a majority of them are below 45 years of age. Officials anticipate bigger spikes in August and September as community-level transmission picks up in certain areas.
Srikakulam Collector J. Nivas, who reviewed the situation in Itchapuram, Palasa, Tekkali and other regions, directed the officials to complete a fever survey in all containment zones. He also directed them to get the health data of pensioners too, since all of them were above 65 years of age. He said that more doctors and medical staff were being appointed to handle new cases in the district. The Collector added that MBBS doctors were given a chance to attend walk-in interviews at GEMS Hospital, a designated COVID-19 hospital.
According to representatives of various organisations, a voluntary lockdown in Vizianagaram and Srikakulam would not help control COVID-19 unless all liquor shops were closed. “Social distancing is almost non-existent at liquor shops as almost all the people are ignoring social distancing norms in queues. A majority of them don’t wear masks. Some of them might be carriers of COVID-19. Ultimately, innocent people will become victims due to their negligence,” said M. Srinivasa Rao, former president of Vizianagaram Rotary Club Central.
Kesali Foundation president Kesali Apparao urged the government to crack down on belt shops in villages immediately. “Many people addicted to alcohol are least bothered about COVID-19 protocols. Their behaviour is the root cause for spread of the disease in North-Andhra region,” he said.
