With the first confirmed COVID-19 positive case reported here, the busy Thyagaraja Nagar area in the heart of the city was totally cordoned off and marked as ‘Red Zone’ on Thursday.
All the roads leading to the locality were barricaded and people from neither side were allowed to move in or out. Residential colonies covered between Bhavani Nagar, Gali Street, Manchala Street, Theertha Katta Street and Patnool Street were quickly brought under the control of the Police Department. The cordoned area falls under the 36th division and is reckoned as the eighth sanitary ward of Municipal Corporation of Tirupati (MCT).
Residents confined to homes
MCT Commissioner P.S. Girisha told the media that apart from the 36th division, the area extending to one kilometre radius around the affected zone - ward numbers 32, 35, 37 and 38 - would also remain sealed and the residents would be confined to home.
Ward volunteers would be roped in to help the residents of these colonies, he added, hinting at the launch of door-to-door sanitisation soon. Family members of the victim would also be sent to hospital for further investigation. MLA Bhumana Karunakar Reddy visited the area and appealed to the public to stay indoors, explaining the dangerous consequences of their moving out.
Many suspects go incognito
The city started panicking on Wednesday with unconfirmed reports putting the number of persons from the city that had visited the Tablighi Jamaat in Nizamuddin at 16. Officially, two visitors were made to undergo the tests, who tested positive.
With many other suspects going into incognito mode fearing stigmatisation, the official machinery is having a tough time in zeroing in on the victims, who could even turn vectors if not detected on time.
