With no respite in the spread of COVID-19 cases in the district, the police authorities have announced a one-day total lockdown in Madanapalle, Puttur and Nagari municipalities on Sunday. After seeing close to 700 cases on Friday, the district tally is racing towards the 8,000 mark, with 68 deaths so far.
The alarming spike in the new cases reported daily since a week has slowly changed the public mood, with fear and uncertainty replacing the earlier relaxed demeanour, particularly in the areas bordering Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Except for a couple of hours in the morning, crowding of people is largely missing in almost all places. While the Tirupati municipal corporation topped the tally with half the number of the total cases in the district, the other civic bodies – Chittoor, Madanapalle, Palamaner, Puttur, Nagari, Srikalahasti and Kuppam and major panchayats – too continue to witness a surge in cases.
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Acknowledging the change in the attitude of public, a police officer said now awareness has dawned on them that July and August would be the most crucial for containment of COVID-19.
Face masks
Compared to the previous weeks, the percentage of public wearing face masks has increased phenomenally. More than 90% of people coming out during the relaxation hours are sporting face masks. With customers preferring to return home well before the 11 a.m. deadline, shop owners are seen packing up early and leaving the market places. The streets are wearing an almost deserted look till the next morning.
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Meanwhile, Collector Narayana Bharat Gupta held an emergency meeting with police, revenue and medical officials at Madanapalle and took stock of the COVID-19 situation. He said the workforce should focus on identifying cases along with primary and secondary contacts and adhering to the isolation and quarantine guidelines.