A first-line treatment center in Karyavattom, Thiruvananthapuram. Asymptomatic people are being brought to these FLTCs to reduce pressure on hospitals. (Photo courtesy: PRD)
Kerala’s capital Thiruvananthapuram, which wobbled under a “triple lockdown” during the past three weeks with the highest number of Covid-19 cases in the state, has been noted as reporting an extensive spread of the infection, higher than the state average.
On Tuesday, the capital district reported 222 new cases, bringing the number of active patients under treatment to 2,936. The neighboring Kollam district with 848 cases and Ernakulam with 798 cases are the second and third most affected districts.
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Prime Minister Pinarayi Vijayan underlined the gravity of the situation. “In Thiruvananthapuram, when you evaluate 18 people, one is positive. In Kerala, it’s one in 36. In India, it’s one in 12 “.
The high workload in the Thiruvananthapuram district is largely attributed to the spread of infection in the community, especially in coastal villages such as Poonthura, Pulluvila, Valiyathura, Anchuthengu and Kadakkavur, located on the outskirts of the capital city.
Kerala was the first in the country to officially confirm the spread of the community. of the virus, saying that it had been observed in certain coastal villages and that the situation justified a blockade with the suspension of all fishing activities and the minimal movement of people.
Subsequently, areas saw rapid antigen tests with a high case positivity rate. Most of the cases were asymptomatic in nature and were transported to First-Line Treatment Centers (FLTC) to reduce pressure on hospitals.
“In addition to the villages on the coast, areas such as Parassala, Kunnnathukal, Pattom, Perunkidavila, Balaramapuram and Kattakada are also seeing an increase in Covid-19 cases. Appropriate awareness campaigns and disease elimination protocols are being carried out specifically for each of these areas, ”said the prime minister.
Aware of the high positivity rate of cases, health officials are seeking to increase testing in the capital district to avoid missing asymptomatic cases. In Kerala, early detection of patients and timely medical care have led to a reduction in the death rate. So far, nearly 40,000 routine RT-PCR samples have been analyzed along with almost 7,000 sentinel samples grouped among front-line workers such as health, police, grocery vendors, etc. On Tuesday, 1,150 samples were collected for antigen testing. Up to 35 teams of healthcare workers are deployed in the groups, taking samples for antigen testing.
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