The district continues to remain in a state of high alert with two more persons testing positive for COVID-19 and 185 others placed under surveillance on Wednesday.
The two patients, from Pothencode and Manacaud, had returned from the Gulf on March 22. The Pothencode native, who arrived from Sharjah, was listed among the primary contacts of a Malappuram man who was aboard the same aircraft and later tested positive for COVID-19.
The 61-year-old Manacaud native, who too arrived on March 22, had not displayed outward symptoms, but was under observation.
Meanwhile, nine people who returned after attending the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin in New Delhi also were tracked down on Wednesday. Samples have been rushed for tests.
On the brighter side, 347 people completed the 28-day observation period in the district without displaying COVID-19 symptoms. As on Wednesday, 17,981 persons are home-quarantined in the district. Seventy-seven people are under observation in various hospitals. As many as 111 samples were sent for tests on Wednesday.
Vigil at Pothencode
Stringent surveillance measures are in place at Pothencode panchayat that went into a three-week total lockdown on Tuesday following the death of a 68-year-old COVID-19 patient, District Collector K. Gopalakrishnan said.
Emphasising the need to prevent community spread of the disease at Pothencode and its neighbourhood, Mr. Gopalakrishnan urged residents to remain indoors and cooperate with the measures enforced by the district administration.
With people advised not to move out of their homes, the administration is enlisting the services of the Kudumbashree Mission to ensure doorstep delivery of ration materials. The residents can avail themselves of the service by dialling 0471-2730421, 9188527551, 8281573442.
The administration has sought the assistance of the Fire and Rescue Services to disinfect public spaces in the panchayat and surrounding regions. Steps are also being taken to perform COVID-19 diagnostic tests on more people, Mr. Gopalakrishnan said, adding that the administration expected the delivery of additional rapid test kits. As part of the clampdown, the police staged a route march in the panchayat.
167 arrested
The police said 167 people were arrested in the district on Wednesday for violating lockdown rules. Of this, 46 were arrested in the city limits. Thirty-six vehicles also were seized. In rural Thiruvananthapuram, 121 people were arrested and 85 vehicles were seized.
