SRIKAKULAM: Srikakulam, which was a corona-free district in the State till now, lost its tag as three Covid-19 positive cases emerged from Kaguvada village in Pathapatnam mandal on Saturday.
More than one-and-half months after the first Covid-19 case was reported from Nellore in the State, Srikakulam recorded its first case.
Interestingly, the man who came from Delhi, did not test positive in the final test, but his close contactees tested positive. The district administration swung into action, announced 18 villages in Pathapatnam mandal as containment areas and decided to enforce lockdown strictly to curb spread of coronavirus. The man hailing from Seedi village in Pathapatnam mandal, visited his in-laws’ house in Kaguvada from Delhi on March 19. An employee in Delhi Metro Rail, he travelled by AP Express and reached Kaguvada to take his wife and 11-month-old baby to Delhi.
Tracking the contactees of Nizamuddin Markaz attendees, who travelled back to the State in various trains, the district administration identified the Delhi returnee and kept him under home quarantine for 28 days. During quarantine, he tested negative for coronavirus. After completing the 28-day quarantine, he developed Covid-19 symptoms and reported to the medical and health officials, who shifted him to Pathapatnam. He tested ‘probable positive’ in TrueNat test three days back.
With this, officials shifted the man and his family members to the Covid-19 designated hospital at Ragolu. In the tests conducted, the Delhi returnee tested negative, but his mother-in-law, father-in-law and sister-in-law tested positive for coronavirus.
Pathapatnam mandal completely locked
For further confirmation, swabs were collected and sent for virology test in Kakinada. Surprisingly, he tested negative even in the virology test. However, the three members of his family, who came in contact with him during the home quarantine, tested positive. The sample results of his wife and child are awaited. The people of Kaguvada and surrounding villages woke up to the shocking news and are now in the grip of fear.
His mother-in-law, a vegetable vendor, used to visit several nearby villages. As many as 29 people, who came in contact with Delhi returnee, were sent to a quarantine centre on Friday. As the village is situated on Andhra - Odisha border, villagers of the neighbouring State are apprehensive of spread of coronavirus. District Collector J Nivas said though no one from Srikakulam attended Nizamuddin Markaz, they identified 211 Delhi returnees. Another person tested presumptive positive in the screening test conducted in the district and the sample was sent for virology test.
Nivas directed officials to enforce lockdown strictly in the 18 containment villages in Pathapatnam mandal. Arrangements have been made for delivery of essential commodities, including vegetables and milk, and even drinking water at the doorstep of people in the 18 containment villages. Mandal-wise check-posts would be set up immediately and the contact tracing would be intensified to curb spread of Covid-19, he said.
The Collector appealed to returnees from Delhi and Mumbai to stay at home and inform Asha workers if they developed any coronavirus symptoms. Survey teams with 23 doctors, 200 Asha workers and other health staff were deployed in Pathapatnam for conducting house-to-house survey to identify the suspected infectees. As many as 13,500 people have been kept under home quarantine in the district after they returned from different States and other districts of the State as a precautionary measure to curb spread of corona. Strict home surveillance is being maintained in the district, the collector said.
211 people who returned from Delhi 18 Villages under containment in Pathapatnam mandal.
29 Direct contactees of the quarantined
Door-to-door survey in Pathapatnam with 23 doctors and 200 Asha workers