Chittoor district on Friday saw a spike of COVID-19 positive cases at 85, which included 58 in Tirupati Rural mandal. This is the highest figure in the tail-end district since December last.
The District Medical and Health Officer M. Penchalaiah told The Hindu that all the officials on COVID-19 duties were alerted at the mandal level after 57 students and a teacher at the Veda Patashala of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams had tested positive for the virus a couple of days ago.
“Chittoor district, which borders with Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, has been witnessing influx of devotees to the temples of Tirumala, Kanipakam and Srikalahasti for a couple of months. At this juncture, the best way to tackle the pandemic spread is to wear masks. In spite of our concerted efforts to educate the general public about wearing masks, the response continues to be poor,” Dr. Penchalaiah said.
More than 5,000 COVID-19 tests per day were being conducted in the district in view of the surge in cases and the number would go up further, the DMHO said.
TTD chief visits SVIMS
The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) trust board Chairman, Y.V. Subba Reddy, along with the Executive Officer Jawahar Reddy and Chandragiri MLA Bhaskar Reddy visited the Veda Patashala students at SVIMS at Tirupati on Friday. The students were admitted in two wards after they tested positive for COVID-19.
He said all the 57 students and a teacher were safe, and only two students showed signs of cold.
