People wait in a queue to give their nasal swab samples to test for the coronavirus at Government Fever Hospital in Hyderabad, India, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.)Telangana, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh Coronavirus Live Updates: The number of novel coronavirus cases rose to 2,64,142 in Andhra Pradesh on Thursday after 9,996 fresh infections were reported across the state in 24 hours. With 82 new deaths, the state’s toll stood at 2,378. Southern states continued reporting high daily virus numbers, with Andhra Pradesh leading with over 9,000 cases on Thursday.
Special Chief Secretary (Health) K S Jawahar Reddy attributed the unabated virulence of Covid-19 in East Godavari (EG) district to the “high density of population.” “The district has a population of 55 lakh. It’s like a big urban area. Villages are also like towns. That’s what we can think of,” Jawahar Reddy replied when asked about the massive surge of cases particularly in the last two to three weeks.
Meanwhile, Telangana reported 1,931 new COVID-19 cases, pushing its tally to 86,475, while the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), the virus hotspot in the state, witnessed a considerable dip in the number of new patients. The total number of people who have recovered from the infectious disease in the state stood at 63,074, while 22,736 were under treatment.
A health worker takes a nasal swab sample to test for COVID-19 in Hyderabad, India, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.)
The Telangana High Court on Thursday directed the state government to initiate action against those private hospitals allegedly charging excessively for COVID-19 patients in violation of guidelines and beyond the prescribed rates fixed by the government. A division bench headed by Chief Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan, while hearing a batch of PILs, directed the government to take strict action in accordance with law on private healthcare facilities, which are not following the state government guidelines while collecting fee from patients.
On Thursday, Telangana Chief Secretary and other senior officials appeared before the Court through video conference and informed it about the various measures undertaken by the state government to tackle COVID-19 and also submitted a report regarding implementation of its orders. Expressing satisfaction, the court expected that the government will explore all possibilities to fulfill and comply with its directions.
Amid battling COVID-19, authorities in Telangana are also up against social stigma attached to the disease with a few people even taking the extreme step of ending their lives over fears of its fallout including being ostracised. Experts say such fears were totally uncalled for and that social stigma was posing a challenge as they pitch for sensitising the people that coronavirus can infect anyone.read more
Telangana, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh Coronavirus Live Updates: Andhra’s COVID tally over 2.64 lakh; Hyderabad Corporation sees dip in cases
