Telangana Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar today said that there was currently no need to impose a lockdown in the state as the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic was "under control", and the number of Covid-19 cases was declining as well.
In a press conference at the BRKR Bhavan, he explained that the state's administration had refused to impose a lockdown as the incidence of Covid-19 in Telangana was falling, nullifying the need for such a measure.
Talking about the shortage of Remdesivir injections in the state, Kumar claimed that the cause of the paucity was that many people were rushing to hospitals, and procuring Remdesivir unnecessarily as they were scared that they had contracted Covid-19.
He then assured the people of the state that there was no need to panic since the TRS government was taking all the steps necessary to prevent the spread of the disease, and added that Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, who
recently recovered from Covid-19 himself, would personally take stock of the pandemic situation soon.
"People need not panic about the pandemic as the CM has the concerned officials to procure more Covid-19 treatment supplies and to set up 14 more RTPCR labs in addition to 17 labs existing in each district. We do not have any shortage of beds or oxygen, therefore. Further, Telangana's recovery rate is high while the number of fatalities has been registering significant falls. Though there was a period when the number of cases had shot up, there is no reason for the state not to return to normalcy by June if the public continues to exercise restraint and follow all the required prevention and safety guidelines. While we are not going to implement a full-blown lockdown, on the suggestion of the state's high court, we are currently considering whether or not to impose a weekend curfew," the CS said.
He also allayed fears about the shortage of medical oxygen, required for the treatment of critical Covid-19 patients, and stated that 6 metric tonnes of oxygen had been procured for Telangana and that the Centre too was providing an adequate amount of oxygen to the state.
"Currently, the state has 52,000 beds with oxygen supply. Private hospitals are being able to procure injections and oxygen as well. Therefore, the state can soon return to normalcy and there is no need to panic. We have enough supplies to treat not only patients from within the state but also those from other states. In fact, 32 ambulances from other states came to Hyderabad carrying Covid-19 patients seeking treatment," Kumar asserted.
"However, I would request people not to rush to hospitals without any symptoms as this will naturally overwhelm the health sector. Instead of panicking, we must all look after ourselves and those around us. But this does not mean that people should hoard supplies that are needed for the treatment of only very serious patients, like Remdesivir injections. As per the guidelines of the ICMR, only symptomatic patients should seek treatment. I would once again ask those without symptoms not to rush to hospitals," he added.
The clarification comes at a time when many in the state, especially migrant labourers, have been worrying that the recent
night curfew is a
precursor to a complete lockdown.