Traders of sweet lime, bananas, eggplants and grapes from Anantapur who have had connection with Koyambedu market in Chennai has the district administration in jitters as the number of cases from the market are rising by the day.
With a woman from Jharkhand testing positive in Puttaparthi, one from Rahamat Nagar in Anantapur city and six others from Hindupur, the tally in the district has increased to 143 (28 of them shown in Others category). While seven patients died, 45 of them were being treated in hospitals.
“So far, we have contacted 310 persons, who had travelled sometime in April and May to Chennai. One of them, from Tanakallu mandal, tested positive on Sunday and his primary contacts and other van drivers, traders, cashiers, are being brought to quarantine centres and tested,” said Deputy Director of Horticulture Subbarayudu, who has been entrusted with the job to trace persons with Koyambedu link in Anantapur district.
Focus on Tadipatri
A majority of those with Koyambedu connections (104 out of 310) hail from Tadipatri mandal, ferrying bananas and sweet lime.
The district administration has asked them not to visit Koyambedu and divert their stocks to other towns and villages in Tamil Nadu or Karnataka. Onions, grapes and vegetables are sent from Dharmavaram, Mudigubba, Anantapur Rural mandal, Putlur and Yellanur and brinjal from Tanakallu mandal to the market in Chennai.
Hindupur MP Gorantla Madhav, along with District Collector Gandham Chandrudu, on Monday visited Hindupur red zones and the government hospital block which is being converted as the district’s COVID-19 hospital.
The work is progressing and the officials expect the hospital to be functional by the weekend. The MP, Collector along with Penukonda Sub-Collector T. Nishanthi and Assistant Collector M. Jahnavi interacted with people in the containment zones of Mukkidipeta in Hindupur and listened to their grievances.
Meanwhile, arrangements are being made to house people returning from foreign countries through Bengaluru airport in government and paid quarantine centres.
