Be extra vigilant on second wave of coronavirus: High Court to Telangana government

Hyderabad: On Thursday, the High Court division bench headed by Chief Justice Raghavendra Singh Chauhan and Justice Bollam Vijaysen Reddy heard a batch of 26 pleas on Covid-19 matters.

Chief Justice Chauhan directed the State government to be extremely vigilant because if the thing is spreading, it's going to spread more than like a wildfire. Not a wildfire, this time it's going to be a forest fire. Further, the government keeps everything ready. Revive everything that has done for the last one year for the people and make sure that all the infrastructure is in places, such as availability of beds, availability of oxygen tanks, availability of Doctors and PPE kits. We do not know what we are about to face, the Court opines.

Chief Justice asked TS Public Health Director G Srinivas Rao that any particular reason why the government is not implementing nigh curfew in the State. We never know the spike may come again. The second wave of the virus may come at any time and the government must be extra vigilant to contain it, CJ added.

Chief Justice RS Chauhan referred to the 279 persons who had recently returned from the United Kingdom and are still not traceable as the addresses provided by them are wrong. Out of those who have been tested positive, 5 persons have tested for coronavirus and a few have tested for the new strain virus.

CJ while expressing serious concern and apathy over the citizens' callous and negligent attitude in providing the wrong address to the officials at the airports, said "people are now showing least civic responsibility to give at least their correct addresses to the government officers. Obviously, it is a difficult task for the officers to locate them in the absence of correct addresses and directed the officials to be more proactive and make all endeavour to trace these UK returnees, or else these returnees will be responsible for spreading the second wave of strain virus in the State.

CJ R S Chauhan, while further directing the State government to consider the possibility of issuing a GO, through which a clear message should be sent to such callous people, who mislead officials from tracing them that such persons who negligently spread the dangerous disease to others, can be punished under Section 269 IPC and prosecution can be initiated against them so that a sense of fear is instilled among them.

The officials manning the fair price shops are directed, not to insist upon the people to undergo biometric identification for obtaining provisions and the Telangana Police is directed to ensure that the no more than 50 persons attend a marriage function in view of the advent of second strain coronavirus in the Telangana State.

The Court directed Advocate General Banda Shivananda Prasad to submit a report with regard to the steps taken by the government in tackling the spread of the new strain virus before January 20 and the matter adjourned to January 21, 2021.