NE NEWS SERVICE
AMARAVATI, APRIL 22
Andhra Pradesh stood first in the country by conducting 830 tests covering a population of 10 lakh which reflect the proactive steps the State has been taking in containing COVID-19, said the Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy here on Wednesday.
Chairing the review meeting, the Chief Minister has given directions to the officials to take firm steps in containing the pandemic across the state.
Officials said that so far 41,512 tests were conducted and State stood first in the number of tests per million followed by Rajasthan. ICMR has given permission to conduct tests with TreuNat machines and 5,757 tests were conducted on Tuesday.
రాష్ట్రంలో కోవిడ్ –19 వైరస్ విస్తరణ, పరీక్షల వివరాలను సీఎంకు వివరించిన అధికారులు. ఇప్పటివరకూ 41,512 మందికి పరీక్షలు చేసినట్టుగా వెల్లడి. ప్రతి పదిలక్షల జనాభాకు 830 మందికి పరీక్షలు చేసి దేశంలోనే ప్రథమ స్థానంలో నిలిచిన ఏపీ. pic.twitter.com/ioCbVp90Nj
— CMO Andhra Pradesh (@AndhraPradeshCM) April 22, 2020
They also informed the Chief Minister that the sample tests conducted with the kits from China were not satisfactory and hence they were not purchased. As an alternative, test kits from South Korea were ordered on a chartered flight, though they were meant to be flown to the US. The tests conducted with the South Korea kits proved to be satisfactory, the officials said.
They said the best practices world over in containing COVID-19 was being observed and pulse-axi-meters were being used for the COVID-19 patients to check their pulse and oxygen levels on a regular basis. The number of such kits would be increased as per the requirement. The Chief Minister directed the officials to ensure adequate number of oxygen cylinders. The officials informed that case sheets were being maintained for all the patients and that standard protocol was also being maintained in all the hospitals.
TreuNat machines were helpful in identifying the positive cases in just two hours and video-conferencing with experts was arranged to keep track of the patient’s health on a regular basis. In all, 300 doctors were involved to cater to the needs of the patients through telemedicine.
When the Chief Minister directed the officials to provide medicines also to the patients identified through telemedicine, the officials replied that it would be ensured by Saturday.
The Chief Minister directed the officials to ensure proper tests for the 7,578 patients in the quarantine and to increase the number of ICU beds in the hospitals in Anantapur, Prakasam and Nellore districts. He said that hospitals should be identified in the towns where there is intensity of the cases to treat the patients locally.
The Chief Minister said that relaxation should be applicable to only green clusters and regulations strictly followed in the red and orange clusters and to see that physical distance was maintained at all the places.
The Chief Minister directed the officials to constantly monitor the prices of essentials in the market and take action against those resorting to hoarding. With reference to Rythu Bharosa and Matsyakara Bharosa schemes, the Chief Minister said that list of beneficiaries should be maintained at the village secretariats for two weeks and wait for a week to receive grievances. He said that cold storages should be ensured for aqua products and to regulate the purchase of produce at the farm gates.
Ministers Botsa Satyanarayana, K Kanna Babu, Chief Secretary Neelam Sawhney, medical and health special chief secretary Jawahar Reddy and DGP Gautam Sawang were present.
More hospitals in red zones: Health Minister
Guntur: In wake of the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in the district, more fever hospitals will be set up in red zones with ventilator facility besides other measures to contain the spread of the pandemic.
This was revealed by Health Minister Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas, who along with M Sucharita and Mopidevi Venkataramana, toured the district on the instructions of Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.
All necessary medications are available and the district has 37 quarantine centres with 3816 isolation rooms. In addition to these, new fever hospitals will be established in red zones with ventilator facilities and 200 more ventilators will be arranged in ICU’s, the Health Minister told media after a review meeting with officials here on Wednesday.
The Group of Ministers (GoP), hailing from the same district, were told that 177 positive cases were recorded in the district.
The Health Minister instructed the officials to implement the lockdown strictly and appealed to the public to remain indoors.“In the district, two cases are yet to be traced so far. Based on the cases, red zones are identified and a special officer is deployed to monitor the situation. As the cases are increasing, more special teams will be assigned in the red zones. One more phase of household survey will be taken up in red zones to identify foreign returnees or those who visited Delhi and their contacts.”
Minister for Marketing, Mopidevi Venkataramana said that there is no need for people to panic and the government is making all efforts to fight against the coronavirus. The Marketing Department has been purchasing majority of food produce including banana, papaya, chilly, paddy and the like from farmers at high prices and is supplying to the public at lower price.
“While the State government is taking such efforts to control the pandemic, opposition parties are making cheap politics. We urge them to cooperate with the government in controlling the situation rather than politicizing it,” he said.
Home Minister M Sucharitha stated that the State is in lockdown for almost a month and the government has taken all the measures to rescue farmers by purchasing their crops. Similarly, the women from self-help groups are also being provided with zero-interest loans. People are advised to stay home and maintain social distance. All the essential commodities like rice, vegetables, dairy products will be made available to the public, the minister said.
Safety of migrant fishermen ensured
The Chief Minister said that he had a telephonic conversation with his Gujarat counterpart Vijay Rupali about the safety of the 6,000 fishermen stranded in Gujarat due to lockdown and adequate food supply and other basic facilities was ensured to them. In this regard the Central government officials were also contacted to take steps to ensure the safety of the fishermen.
Speaking at a review meeting here on Wednesday, the Chief Minister advised the officials concerned to pay special attention on the issue. The Chief Minister also directed the officials to provide Rs 2,000 to each fisherman stranded in Gujarat to meet their basic needs. The officials were asked to coordinate with the Gujarat government in this regard, a release from CMO said.
