Nanjangud has been cut off from the rest of the district and the State as it is a containment zone following the confirmation of five COVID-19 cases on Saturday.
One of the persons who tested positive (P-52) was an employee of a pharma company, and five others who tested positive later were employed in the same firm. Hence, the authorities have decided to ensure that all the workers are brought under quarantine.
Superintendent of Police C.B. Rishyanth said there were 1,372 employees on the company rolls, of whom more than 900 were under quarantine as on Sunday. The remaining will be by Monday.
Deputy Commissioner Abhiram G. Sankar said that there are instructions to ensure that first-level contacts or the primary contacts (people who were in close or direct contact with those who tested positive) are shifted to a quarantine facility and are not left under home quarantine as many of them live in line or row houses with close contact with other houses. Hence, the authorities will use hostels, yatri niwas, schools and colleges. However, the condition of all the COVID-19 positive patients is stable and there is no need to panic, he added.
Restrictions have been clamped and all entry and exit routes blocked. Only vehicles with essential supplies, including medicines, will be allowed to pass through, with the necessary precautionary measures and under the watch of the police.
As on date, 776 people in the district have completed their 14-day quarantine period and 1,702 are isolated at home. Out of 90 samples tested, 82 were negative and eight had tested positive as on Sunday.
Measures are also in place to ensure that migrant workers do not leave the district, and their welfare, including daily rationing, has been ensured, the DC said. The authorities have also seized 220 vehicles from across the district for lockdown violations.
