The district recorded its first death due to COVID-19 after a 45-year-old man, a native of Narsaraopet, died while undergoing treatment at the Infectious Diseases Hospital on Thursday.
On April 6, the man showed up at the OP at the Government General Hospital, Narsaraopet, with symptoms of fever and X-ray revealed that he had tuberculosis. The next day, the man went to the GGH here. He was then referred to the ID Hospital at Gorantla and his samples were sent for testing for COVID-19. After his death, it emerged that he had coronavirus infection. The death was baffling as revenue and police sources said neither the man nor his family had any travel history. Also, he had not met any foreign/Jamaat returnee.
A complete sanitisation exercise was taken up at Oravakatta, the place where the man resided, and the area was declared a red zone. Narsaraopet Revenue Divisional Officer Venkateswarlu said the town had not recorded a single positive case.
Stringent regulations
The district administration has announced several new measures in Guntur city, imposing new restrictions on movement of people. District Collector I. Samuel Ananda Kumar said that lockdown relaxation would be for only three hours between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. and said that no movement of vehicles would be allowed after 10 a.m. Even those working in government, would have to reach their offices by 10 a.m. and they will be allowed only after 5 p.m.
The Collector said the situation continued to be alarming in Guntur district where over 50 positive cases were recorded, of which 30 are from Guntur city.
The Collector said that NGOs, charitable organisations should move only with valid passes given by the District Revenue Officer and said that cases would be registered against those violating the orders.
