HYDERABAD: After several Covid-19 outbreaks in educational institutes across Telangana, eight districts in the state now have a positivity rate greater than zero, worrying experts. Small outbreaks, according to experts, can lead to a spike in cases, if people are not cautious.
While the state health department is poised to assess the situation on ground, Adilabad has the highest positivity rate of 0.39 per cent among the districts, followed by Hyderabad and Hanumkonda with 0.13 per cent each.
Other districts with somewhat higher than zero positivity rate are Medak, Rangareddy, Sangareddy, Nalgonda, and Suryapet. Now, the rest of the districts have a zero per cent positivity rate, indicating a better situation.
The Centre has advised states to exercise caution and impose a night curfew in the districts with more than 7 per cent positivity rate.
Though none of the districts in the state has a positivity rate near one per cent , the state’s overall positivity rate has risen to 0.54 per cent, up from 0.49 per cent a few days ago. The number of daily cases in the state has also been climbing, and it is already approaching 200 positive cases per day.
Experts advise more aggressive immunisation and more Covid- 19 appropriate behaviour. They claim that, with cases on the rise and the looming threat of Omicron, it is the moment to launch an aggressive campaign across the state to track down those who have not received the second dosage of the vaccination.
“Precautionary measures such as avoiding large cultural events and making second doses of vaccination mandatory for those working in government offices, educational institutions, malls, hotels, cinemas, and so on will go a long way in reducing the rise in Covid cases,” said Dr Subhodh Kandamuthan, director, professor at Centre for Health Care Management, Administrative Staff College of India.
