The COVID-19 caseload in the district rose by 226 new cases on Wednesday, of which local transmission accounted for 191 cases. The situation in Thiruvananthapuram continues to be serious, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.
The district administration is planning to step up testing to identify if there is cluster formation at Chala and Karimadom, District Collector Navjot Khosa said. “We will be testing aggressively for the next few days to assess the situation. At the moment, there is no need to panic but to be alert,” Ms. Khosa said.
The source of infection remains uncertain in 15 of the cases reported on Wednesday. The day’s caseload included 18 health workers. Locally acquired infection accounted for 94.94% of the cases reported in the district, according to the government.
Meanwhile, the situation in regions close to the Thiruvananthapuram- Kanyakumari border remains grave. Twenty-three people in the coastal village of Adimalathura tested positive on Wednesday. Parassala reported ten new cases. Poovar, Pulluvila, and Pozhiyoor reported 14, nine, and five cases respectively. The Chief Minister also expressed concern over the rising number of cases in border areas such as Parassala.The Neyyattinkara depot of the KSRTC was shut after a conductor tested positive. A Fire and Rescue Service personnel attached to the Chenkalchoola unit tested positive, following which three of his colleagues were advised to go into quarantine.
New CFLTC
A decision has been taken to convert the National Games Shooting Range at Vattiyoorkavu into a special COVID first-line treatment centre (CFLTC) for treating police, health, and sanitation personnel infected with the virus. The facility will be able to accommodate 50 people at a time. The services of police doctors will be made available here.
Increasing numbers of front line personnel have fallen prey to the virus in recent weeks, prompting the government to take the decision. Staff strength at other CFLTCs also will be increased to handle the increased caseload, it was decided at a district-level review chaired by Cooperation Minister Kadakampally Surendran. Staff will be drawn from various departments, including AYUSH, to ensure sufficient manpower.
