Has Andhra Pradesh started coming out of the Coronavirus crisis gradually? The answer seems to be yes, according to the indications given by the officials at a review meeting conducted by chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday.
According to official figures, only one positive case was reported in the state on Tuesday, after a steep rise in the number of cases in the last five consecutive days.
The state recorded the first double digit figure of 11 positive cases for Coronavirus on March 26 when the episode of Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi surfaced. The number suddenly went up to 113 on April 1, in a span of less than six days.
By Monday night, the number of cases shot up to 309, including five discharged patients. But on Tuesday, the state reported only one positive case, though one more person died of the disease taking the toll to four.
According to the health department, the tests on all Tablighi Jamat returnees and their primary contacts are almost over. And so, the chances of new cases surfacing are less. Out of 304 active Covid-19 patients taking treatment in hospitals, 280 patients had been associated with Tablighi Jamaat meeting and their primary contacts.
Out of 1085 persons who were identified to have attended Jamaat meeting, tests were conducted on 997 patients till now and 194 of them turned out to be positive.
Another 2,400 people were identified to have come in contact with them and of them, 84 persons tested positive.
Among others, tests were conducted on as many as 205 persons who had come from foreign countries and of them, 11 persons tested positive.
Among another 120 persons who came in contact with these foreign returnees, six tested positive. Similarly, as many as 134 locals got themselves admitted with symptoms of cold, cough and fever; and of them, seven tested positive, the officials said.