VIJAYAWADA: Even as Covid-19 has been widespread across the country, here is a village in Andhra Pradesh, which has remained unaffected by the virus so far. Duggiralapadu in G Konduru mandal of Krishna district is probably the only village in the entire State with the distinction of not recording even a single Covid case so far.
The village adjacent to neighbouring Telangana has a population of 1,000. Majority of people are dependent on agriculture for their livelihood. The villagers have taken all necessary precautions since the outbreak of pandemic to protect themselves. Curbs have been imposed on entry of outsiders, with entry points to the village being barricaded.
G Mallikharjuna Rao (54), a resident of Duggiralapadu, attributes non-emergence of even a single Covid case in the village to strict adherence to Covid guidelines by all. “No one in the village ventures out without wearing a mask and carrying sanitiser,” he says.
Sanitation workers carry out fogging operations and spraying of sodium hypochlorite solution in the village twice a week. Drains in the village are cleaned on alternate days.
“We have eight provision stores in our village. People of one ward are allowed to purchase essential commodities on a particular day to avoid crowding,” says A Nagalakshmi, another resident.
The people have unanimously decided not to conduct any festival, fair or other ritual in the village to avoid public gathering. No one in Duggiralapadu attends functions in relatives’ houses in neighbouring villages during Covid times.