Manuguru industrial belt in the grip of COVID-19

According to information, six people died in Manuguru in the last one month, and 52 positive cases have been reported in the last three days.
A women praying before getting covid 19 test at iMSAQ van. (Photo | EPS/RVK Rao)
A women praying before getting covid 19 test at iMSAQ van. (Photo | EPS/RVK Rao)

KHAMMAM: The death of Covid-19 frontline warrior Dr G Naresh Kumar and that of six others in the Manuguru industrial belt has raised concerns about the spread of the virus in the area. Doctors said they were unable to understand how the virus was spreading so fast.

Workers from the Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL), Bhadradri Thermal Power Station (BTPS), and the Heavy Water Plant at Manuguru are exposed to dust most of the time, which can have adverse affect on their immune systems, thereby making them susceptible to the virus. Health officials said that many SCCL employees and officers were being severely affected by the disease. Senior doctor Gajula Koteswara Rao said at the open-cast coal mines, the BTPS and the Heavy Water Plant many were developing lung-related diseases and going to hospitals with asthma and allergy-related problems.

According to information, six people died in Manuguru in the last one month, and 52 positive cases have been reported in the last three days. A medical officer said sudden deaths were also taking place even before the patient reached critical stage. A medical superintendent said that medical staff were not coming to work in quarantine centres and PHCs due to fear of contracting the virus. After the death of
Dr Naresh, two doctors have resigned, he added.

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