Tirupati: Untraced Covid patients worry pilgrim city

Tirupati: The officials have been caught in a double whammy situation with ever rising Covid cases on one side and with those giving wrong credentials at the time of testing who could not be traced after they are tested positive. The whereabouts of more than 1,000 such positive patients are not known which is causing a serious concern for the officials.

About 14.20 lakh samples were tested in the district so far, out of which 1.17 lakh patients have been tested positive. Tirupati has reported 9,164 positive cases up to April 25, of which 7,270 patients could be traced while another 845 are out of Tirupati. But the addresses of the remaining 1,049 patients could not be traced by the officials.

Corporation officials have become helpless as they could not isolate these missing patients. Their efforts to contact them become futile as the mobile numbers given by them at the time of enrolment for testing were either wrong or their phones were switched off. They could not be even found at the addresses as per Aadhaar cards.

Without being isolated at Covid care centres or hospitals or even at homes, such patients will become hazardous to the society. There is a possibility of such patients moving normally with others in the society if they have mild symptoms are asymptomatic and will spread the virus to others. This has become a serious concern to the officials and other people as well.

However, District Medical and Health Officer (DM&HO) Dr M Penchalaiah told The Hans India that the untraced patients' number might be much less than anticipated. They might have given wrong details due to various reasons. However, the list was sent to the police department and they will trace them at any cost.