Three Andhra road transport corporation staff have died of COVID-19, 77 others infected

VIJAYAWADA: Three employees of the state-run AP State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) have succumbed to COVID-19 while 77 others tested positive for the virus while performing their duties during the pandemic.

APSRTC vice chairman and managing director M Pratap on Wednesday said of the three employees who died, two are bus conductors and one a mechanic. Pratap said among the 77 employees who tested positive for the virus, four bus drivers from Visakhapatnam got affected while attending duties for ambulance services during the lockdown period.

After the resumption of passenger services from May 21 owing to lockdown relaxations, as many as 40 passengers who travelled by bus on various routes tested positive for the virus.

"We have traced 800 passengers who travelled with the positive tested persons and collected their samples which tested negative", Pratap said and appealed to passengers with COVID-19 symptoms to avoid travel and not to put others at risk.

Commenting on the resumption of inter-state bus services between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, the MD said that the corporation has conducted one round of talks with TSRTC officials and submitted a route map for resuming 256 buses in the first phase.

However, the second round of talks scheduled to be held at Hyderabad got postponed as COVID-19 cases were reported in Bus Bhavan, the office of the TSRTC.