The south-coastal region of Andhra Pradesh is witnessing a steady increase in coronavirus cases as 19 more persons — 15 in Nellore and four in Prakasam district — tested positive for the pandemic on Friday.
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With this, the total number of confirmed cases rose to 385 in in Nellore district and 150 in Prakasam district.
In a welcome development, 14 patients — 10 in Ongole and four in Nellore — were discharged from designated COVID-19 hospitals on Friday.
A doctor was among those who tested positive in Nellore. Those who worked along with the doctor were put in isolation. Nellore city accounted for a maximum of eight new cases followed by Rapur with three cases and Venkatachalam and Dattalur with one case each. A person who had come from Bihar and another person from Tirupati also tested positive, according to a bulletin released by the Medical and Health Department.
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In Ongole, a 24-year-old woman from Santharavuru village who had returned from Hyderabad was infected as also a 29-year-old man, a Haryana returnee to Pakala village, COVID-19 Nodal Officer John Richards said. A 20-year-old youth from Chevuru village with a travel history to Chennai also contracted the virus. A 28-year-old man from Kondi village, near Kandukur, also tested positive.
Nellore Collector M.V. Seshagiri Babu attributed the rise in coronavirus cases to persons with travel history to other States arriving back. Chennai and Delhi returnees accounted for a maximum number of 385 cases reported in the district, he said, adding that all those coming from high-risk states of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and the national capital would be subjected to screening and sent for quarantine.
Urging the people to voluntarily take all precautionary measures including wearing of masks and maintaining social distancing, the Collector said that those without masks would be fined ₹200 in urban areas and ₹100 in rural areas.