The COVID-19 caseload scaled new peaks in Thiruvananthapuram as 377 people were diagnosed with the disease on Sunday. Several police officers, including the Attingal Deputy Superintendent of Police (Dy.SP), were among those infected. Indicating that local transmission remained high, over 96% of those infected, i.e. 363 people, are known to have contracted the infection from other patients. Eleven health-care workers also tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.
The district’s official death tally went up to 14 with the National Institute of Virology, Alappuzha, confirming that the 68-year-old woman, who hailed from Parassala, died of COVID-19 on July 29.
Attingal Dy.SP S.Y. Suresh and six police officers attached to his office were among the police officers who tested positive. Several cases were reported among officers in various police stations, including Kilimanoor, Varkala, and Anjuthengu in the Attingal police subdivision limits recently. Besides, Mr. Suresh was among those who led the disinfection in the Kilimanoor police station where all officers had to go into quarantine after three officers tested positive. Attingal MLA B. Sathyan, who participated in a review meeting in the Kilimanoor block panchayat office on Saturday with the Dy.SP, has gone into self-quarantine.
The other officers include a police officer and a driver attached to the Kerala Police headquarters, one officer in the Armed Reserve Camp, and two policemen and a temporary staff member at the police guest house.
The COVID-19 cluster in the Thekkummoodu bund colony, spread across the Kunnukuzhy and Pattom wards, continued to grow with 17 more residents being diagnosed with the disease. In all, 53 people tested positive in the colony.
66 recoveries
The number of active cases in the district has gone up to 3,472 while 66 people recovered from the illness on the day.
Meanwhile, the district administration declared new containment zones in the Perunthanni ward in the Corporation, Arattukuzhy and Vellarada wards in Vellarada grama panchayat, and Udiyankulangara ward in Kollayil grama panchayat. Plathara and Mukkola wards in Karakulam grama panchayat have been removed from the list of containment zones. Total shutdown was observed in the Nedumangad municipality and Vilappil grama panchayat on Sunday.
