HYDERABAD: Telangana recorded 16 new COVID-19 positive cases on Friday, taking the total number of active cases to 430. While majority of the cases have been reported from Hyderabad district, Sircilla saw it’s first positive case on the day. There were no new deaths reported, however, while there were speculations that several of those who had tested positive in the last week of March would be discharged, the State saw no new recoveries and discharges on Friday.
The present spike in number of new cases is also low compared to last week when up to 70 positive cases were detected in a day. The total number of cases the State has seen in the last 41 days is now at 487 — 430 active cases, 45 discharged and 12 deaths.
Hyderabad continues to be the district with highest number of cases (179 active cases), followed by Nizamabad with 49 active cases. Rangareddy, Warangal Urban and Medchal districts have 27, 23 and 21 cases respectively. Most other districts have below 15 cases. The State government, meanwhile, said that there is no evidence of community transmission in the State, but to contain the spread, 101 hot spots have been identified and strict measures are put in place. To ensure coordination in containment efforts, the Chief Secretary is also holding daily video conferences with all concerned officials.
Cabinet to take a call on extension of lockdown
The State Cabinet will hold a special meeting under the chairmanship of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao at Pragathi Bhavan from 3 pm on Saturday to take decisions on some key issues, including the proposal to extend the lockdown to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
The Chief Minister had already suggested to the Central government to extend the lockdown by a week or two after the current one ends on April 14. The Cabinet will also discuss at length the situation arising out of the spread of Coronavirus as well as the State’s economic situation and how to overcome the present financial crisis. An action plan on how to mop up funds to run the State will also be discussed
There shouldn’t be any shortage of essential commodities, orders KCR
CM KCR called upon people to bear with the lockdown with the same spirit which they have shown till now to control the spread of Coronavirus. At a review with officials on Friday, the CM directed officials to ensure that there is no shortage of essential commodities. |