Poonthura witnessed tense scenes on Friday morning following a protest by local people without following social distancing norms.
Health workers also bore the brunt of the protest. Their vehicles were blocked and they had to face angry outbursts from the protesters. The protest, fuelled partly by lack of access to essential items and partly by false rumours regarding testing, led Health Minister K.K. Shylaja to make an emotional appeal to not mislead the public and worsen the situation. The district administration also eased some of the restrictions and promised to run mobile units of Supplyco and Consumerfed, as well as mobile ATMs in the affected wards.
Rumour
According to sources, there has been a rumour among the local population that the government was reporting a larger number of cases in Poonthura than what actually exists. Many here believe that the rapid antigen tests are not accurate and even people with mild symptoms are testing positive.
The reporting of cases from the adjacent Manikyavilakam and Puthenpallly wards under Poonthura’s name, as it belongs to the same cluster of virus spread, has also led to anger among the people.
On Friday morning, protesters stopped a vehicle carrying health workers to a test centre. “We were divided into five teams and each of the teams had to take 100 tests during the day, with an aim of 500 tests. Our team’s vehicle was heading to the test centre when a group surrounded the vehicle and began shouting at us. They alleged that Poonthura was being unfairly branded,” said a health worker.
Since July 6, the Health Department conducted 1,192 tests in Poonthura alone, of which 243 positive cases were found.
The three wards have a total of 31,985 people, out of which 5,611 are elderly and 2,250 are below the age of five. The area also has 184 people under palliative care.
The people have also been facing a shortage of essential items, as only a few shops are functioning and the shops from adjacent areas were not keen on them visiting.
A meeting was held with local people and officials in attendance. According to Father Bevinson, Vicar of the Poonthura church, demands were raised for the declaration of results from each ward separately.
Restrictions
Later, Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran, in-charge of the district, announced easing of some of the restrictions. He said mobile units of the Supplyco and Consumerfed would travel around the wards to provide essential items at affordable rates. The local population would be allowed to carry out fishing for their own needs. “They can sell the fish locally, and the rest will be procured by the Matsyafed. No auctioning will be allowed, nor can fish be brought from outside,” said Mr. Surendran.
