An uneasy calm prevails in Ranni from where five COVID-19 positive cases have been reported three days ago.
Many shops remained closed in the town as people seemed reluctant to come out to public places out of fear. Many roads, including those in the town limits, were found nearly deserted. Unlike many other working days, the public transport vehicles plying on the roads too were found to have less commuters. “Though the sales have come down drastically ever since the outbreak of COVID-19, I have opened the shop just to avoid the boredom of sitting idle at home,’’ said a hardware merchant at Ittiyappara junction in the town.
A majority of the nearly 1,000 persons, who have been quarantined, either at their homes or at hospitals, following the COVID-19 outbreak are from Ranni and surrounding areas as the first five cases tested positive are from its small village of Aythala. Many people passing through Ranni were found to have been wearing masks.
The employees at various shops, banks, staff of KSRTC as well as private buses too were wearing masks.
Authorities have made arrangements to take two students who have been put under home quarantine in Ranni to the SSLC examination centre in the town in a special vehicle on Monday. They were provided with special room for writing the examination.
