Hyderabad: In a bid to control the rapidly growing spread of the coronavirus in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, Telangana Chief Minister KCR is planning to impose another lockdown for approximately 15 days in the city.
During a high-level intense meeting in PragathiBhavan, the CM along with other ministers discussed the implications of a lockdown keeping in mind the rise of infections in Hyderabad. Following the meeting, KCR told the media that the cabinet will be issuing a notice regarding the decision and further details on imposing a lockdown in the next three to four days.
The CM, in a statemen,t said, “Hyderabad is a metropolitan city in which one crore people live. It is natural that like other cities in the country, the spread of coronavirus is high. People started moving around after the lockdown was lifted. Other cities in the country are also thinking on these lines.”
He added saying, “Let us examine the situation keenly for two to three days. If need be, Cabinet will be convened in three to four days to discuss proposals for the lockdown, alternatives and other related issues and a decision will be taken.”
Post the meeting with the ministers, Telangana’sHealth Minister, EatalaRajender said that he threw light on the current situation of the state gripped under the virus and the future consequences of it to the Chief Minister.
In a statement, Mr. Eatala said, “The coronavirus outbreak is spreading fast across the country. Telangana is also in the same situation. The death toll in Telangana is low compared to the national average. There is nothing to be afraid of and we are completely prepared to handle the issue.”
Officials said that Telangana could take a similar step as Chennai and go ahead with a lockdown to prevent worsening the already grim situation.
As engaging the city in a lockdown is a bigmove, the authorities said that the police needs to stay prepared and alert as they will be needed a lot to maintain the lockdown regulations with discipline and no possibility of any unfortunate event.
Along with Health Minister EatalaRajender, Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar and senior officials of the Health Department were also present in the meeting.
The total number of COVID-19 cases in Telangana increased to over 13,000, with 1,087 fresh cases reported on Sunday. This has been the highest single-day spike in the number of cases in Telangana this now. The state has 8,265 current active COVID-19 patients tallied on Sunday. While 243 people have died due to the virus, 4,928 people in the state have recovered from it. Saturday saw six more deaths.
From the 1,087 new cases reported on Saturday, 888 were registered in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) area, the biggest hotspot in the state. Ranga Reddy and Medchal districts, bordering GHMC, reported 74 and 37 cases each.
The spread hasn’t been restricted to Hyderabad, Nalgonda reported 35 new cases and Sangareddy district has recorded 11 new cases in the state taking the count even higher.
