As many as 77 people, including two health-care workers, tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in Kottayam on Saturday.
Of the new cases, 67 were through local transmission while six persons had landed from abroad. Four patients had returned from other States. Two health-care workers — a 61-year-old doctor of a private hospital and a 29-year-old staff nurse from the taluk hospital at Pampady — were among those who infected through local transmission.
Paippad, declared a COVID-19 cluster, reported 12 new cases while six cases were reported from Changanassery, another cluster. Nine persons in Kottayam municipality contracted the virus through local contact while Vaikom recorded two cases. Grama panchayats, including Kurichi, Thrikkodithanam, Vazhappally, Erumeli, Thalayazham etc.too reported local contact cases.
Collector tests negative
Forty-six people who recovered from the disease were discharged from hospitals, bringing down the active cases in Kottayam to 396.
District Collector M. Anjana and 13 others at the District Collectorate tested negative for the virus at an antigen test on Saturday. These officials had been in quarantine since July 21 after an office assistant at the Collector’s office tested positive.
District Police Chief G. Jaidev might continue in quarantine as his wife, a doctor at the Radio Diagnosis department at the Government Medical College, Kottayam, has been among the primary contacts of a patient.
A COVID first-line treatment centre (FLTC) exclusively for women and children started functioning in Ettumanur on Saturday. The facility is being launched in view of the reluctance shown by women to undergo COVID-19 tests for fear of being isolated from their infant children.
The district administration seeks to set up 55 FLTCs in the first phase and this will later be enhanced to 90. The staff required for running these units will be pooled from various departments, including Homoeopathy and Ayurveda wings.
Presently, three doctors and four nurses are being planned for 50 beds along with nursing assistants, cleaning staff, and data-entry operators.
