Hyderabad’s Covid cases shoot past 1,000, two die

HYDERABAD: The Covid-19 surge in Telangana on Thursday saw Hyderabad’s daily tally shoot past the 1,000-mark with the state health department reporting that the city, along with the rest of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) area saw 1,214 fresh cases for the day.

Neighbouring districts, Ranga Reddy and Medchal-Malkajgiri reported 213 and 161 cases. Two more persons died from the disease in the state on Thursday taking the fatalities from Covid-19 to 4,036.

On Wednesday, the GHMC reported 979 cases, Ranga Reddy had 174 cases, while Medchal-Malkajgiri had 132 cases. The case tally was 1,520 for the entire state on Wednesday. Twenty-one other districts also reported an increase in cases over Wednesday.

As per the decision announced earlier in the day by the health department, no data on fresh Omicron cases in Telangana was released by it.

“We are seeing a four-fold increase in cases over the past week and we expect the cases to rise. We urge people to follow safety precautions to prevent catching Covid, or spreading it to others,” director of public health & family welfare Dr G. Srinivasa Rao said.

He also called on private hospitals not to admit Covid-19 patients who might be going to them out of anxiety, even when they did not require hospitalisation. “When the surge is at its peak and even if 1 per cent of those infected need hospital care, filling up of beds with those who do not, will result in serious burden on services. We also urge doctors and private hospitals to follow the ICMR protocol with respect to treatment and not prescribe expensive drugs to Covid patients as we have seen that they really do not do much to control the disease,” he said.

On imposing restrictions on gatherings in public places such as movie theatres, malls, pubs and bars, restaurants and the like, the top health official said, “People have been warned to be careful. They know they should not go into crowds. The government is fully geared up to provide treatment to those who need it in hospitals, and at home by giving home isolation treatment kits.”