THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The number of cases with unknown sources of infection continues to show a rising trend in the district even as 274 new Covid positive cases were reported on Wednesday. While 250 cases were instances of local transmission, the source of infection remains unknown in 14 cases. The trend is particularly worrying as cases with unknown sources of infection have in the past led to cluster formations or a large number of infections in a region.
The number of fresh cases in some of the clusters in the district also remains high, with Anchuthengu reporting 35 cases, followed by Parassala (12), Vallakadavu and Karode (10 each). With more people contracting the virus in the Kunnathukal and Karakkonam regions, Vellarada is also showing a rise in the number of Covid patients. Poovar reported 20 fresh cases prompting further tests in the region. The Neyyattinkara municipality, Vellarada and Kalliakad -- which are limited clusters -- are showing signs of developing into large clusters. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that extra precautions and strict measures are being taken to manage the situation. The situation in Neyyar dam area in Kallikadu is moving towards superspread.
The panchayat has reported close to 100 cases in one week after around 300 tests. The source of infection are two persons - one contracted the virus from a hospital while the other was infected during travel. The virus spread in their locality and also in localities where their primary contacts live. Among the three localities where a large number of cases are reported, Perinkulangara tops the list with 40 cases, followed by Mylakkara and Thunduva. “We cannot say it is a superspread, but the situation is serious. Since many localities in the Parassala constituency, including Vellarada shares border with Tamil Nadu, a major issue is infection through inter-state travellers, said C K Hareendran MLA.