Drop in Covid cases reduces burden on CCCs in Chittoor

Tirupati: The declining fresh Covid cases has been easing the burden on Covid care centres (CCC) and hospitals in Chittoor district gradually. Out of 5,934 beds spread over 24 Covid care centres across the district which have witnessed more than 90 per cent occupation for many days in the last month, there are only 1,893 active cases leaving 4,041 beds vacant which shows the fall in Covid cases graph.

On Wednesday, only 175 new admissions were there out of which 63 are in Padmavathi Nilayam only. This facility, which was overcrowded till a few days back, is having about 520 inpatients now out of 1,100 beds. The 1,034 bedded Vishnu Nivasam is having only 130 inpatients and the new admissions have almost become nil and is on the verge of closure.

Another facility Srinivasam in Tirupati is having 224 inpatients out of 1,270 beds. Madhavam CCC was already closed which may be followed by many others one after another in the next few days. Vishnu Nivasam and Srinivasam along with some centres in the western parts may be the first to down their shutters.

For instance, the CCC at Arogyavaram in Madanapalle is having no inpatient status as of now with all 60 beds lying vacant. About 70 per cent of beds are vacant in the recently opened CCC in Srikalahasti and the same is the case with many other centres.

In fact, it was a remarkable change in the situation exactly a month ago during which the officials were forced to look for various facilities to set up CCCs in several areas with the intense burden on the centres in Tirupati like Padmavathi Nilayam, Vishnu Nivasam and Srinivasam.

The officials were of the view that due to strict implementation of lockdown norms, the cases have started declining and the overall impact of the second wave was also coming down. But, they were saying that unless people should be careful and follow all safety precautions, the cases may start going up again. It may be noted that, after reaching a peak in May, the infections have been coming down slowly since the end of that month. During the last 10 days, the district witnessed a maximum number of 1,396 daily cases which was a significant reduction from the peak of about 3,000 infections in May.

The whole month has reported 70,467 cases and 327 deaths. However, the daily cases fell to below 1,000 mark now for four days in a row with the lowest of 780 on Wednesday. Significantly, the cases in rural areas are outnumbering that of urban areas. Out of 780 new cases on Wednesday, urban areas account for 217 while the rural areas share was 563. With this, the official machinery has focused its attention on rural areas and sensitising people.