The city has turned out to be one of the worst affected by COVID-19 as there seems to be no end in sight in the number of fresh cases being reported day after day.
As of Sunday, Krishna district has reported a total of 266 COVID cases, and 220 of them are from the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) limits - just about 62 sq. km. in area with over 12 lakh population. Being one of the most densely populated areas, the city now has an average of three COVID-19 positive cases in a square kilometre area.
Vijayawada Rural and Penamaluru mandals, which are very much part of the city, together reported 24 cases while the remaining eight mandals scattered in the district reported just 22 cases.
Hotspots Krishnalanka and Karmika Nagar
Though it seemed the spread of the virus was in control in the city after the initial spread through Tablighi Jamaat returnees, two persons in Krishnalanka and Karmika Nagar near Machavaram down area caused the numbers to nearly triple.
A truck driver in Krishnalanka reportedly spread the infection to at least 40 persons while a foreign returnee in Karmika Nagar infected more than 20 persons in a couple of days after March 25 when the total cases were just around 100.
Account for 44 per cent
Now, the number has more than doubled to 220 and in Krishnalanka alone there are 75 cases while Karmika Nagar and Machavaram areas have 43 cases. Both the areas account for 44 per cent of the city’s cases. Nearly every street in the Krishnalanka, Ranigari Thota areas have at least one positive case.
Remaining cases come from Ajith Singh Nagar (13), Kummaripalem (8), Khuddus Nagar (7), Gandhi Nagar (7), Kothapeta (7), Moghalrajpuram (5), Madhura Nagar (5) and other areas, as per the list released by the district administration.
Officials on their toes
The unexpected surge in the cases has put the officials concerned on their toes. District Collector A.Md. Imtiaz, along with Commissioner of Police Ch. Dwaraka Tirumala Rao were out on the streets to sensitise public about the need for maintaining social distance.
As per the district COVID-19 bulletin, so far 12,582 samples were tested and results of 1,564 samples are awaited. Out of the 266 patients 46 have recovered and more would be discharged in a couple of days. Eight people have died and 212 patients including four Raj Bhavan staffers, about 12 policemen are being treated at the dedicated COVID-19 hospitals. There are 612 persons in quarantine centres at present.
