COVID-19 count crosses 4,000 mark in Telangana; Doctors want decentralisation of treatment

Eight people died of COVID-19 and 191 tested positive in Telangana on Wednesday, taking the toll to 156 and the infection count past the 4,000 mark, the government said, indicating the rise was due to flouting of safety norms by people post recent relaxation of lockdown curbs.

The city corporation area alone accounted for 143 of the fresh cases. There were no overseas returnees or migrant workers among those who tested positive on Wednesday, it said. There has been a surge in the number of cases after the relaxations of some measuresof the ongoing lockdown aimed at containing the spread of the virus, a bulletin said.

It said 1,817 people have been discharged so far from hospitals after recovery, leaving the number of active cases at 2,138. As of 5 PM on Wednesday, the total confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state stood at 4,111, including 448 returnees from overseas and other states.

"People are travelling across the state (following easing of curbs) and some of them are not following the basic preventive measures like wearing a mask, maintaining safe physical distancing and overcrowding. There has been a surge in the cases since relaxation of lockdown," it said.

The state has already allowed operation of public transport while temples and malls reopened earlier this week with restrictions including wearing of face masks and social distancing. Meanwhile, junior doctors at the state-run Gandhi Hospital launched a protest against the attack on a doctor by the kin of a COVID-19 patient who passed away, prompting state Health Minister E Rajender to hold talks with them.

Two persons who assaulted the doctor at the Gandhi Hospital on Tuesday night were arrested, a police official said. The junior doctors, who began their protest after thealleged attack late on Tuesday night, held the demonstration in the hospital and raised slogans condemning the incident.

Rajender, who condemned the attack on the duty doctor, reached the Gandhi hospital for talks and discussed with the junior doctors on their problems for four hours, an official release said. He informed them that he would meet their representatives every week at the hospital itself and assured to resolve all their problems, following which the junior doctors said they are calling off their agitation, it said.

Rajender said a decision on decentralisation of COVID-19 treatment would be announced after discussing the matter with the Chief Minister, the release added. However, a leader of the junior doctors said their protest would continue as their main demand of decentralisation of COVID-19 treatment in the state has not been met.

As Gandhi hospital is the only government hospital where treatment for coronavirus is being provided, the doctors wanted other hospitals in the state also to share the work load. They will decide their future course of action, he said.