Telangana Government has put over 130 municipalities on high alert

Hyderabad: In its attempt to check the spread of Coronavirus, the TS government has put over 130 municipalities on high alert.

According to officials, most of the infected persons are from the group which had attended a religious congregation in Delhi and they belong to urban areas of the state.

To prevent any king of spread of the deadly virus at community level in the districts, the government has declared ward wise red zones in over 50 municipalities and imposed restrictions on the movement of people.

In majority municipalities, a ban on the movement of people even from one ward to another ward has been imposed.

They have been asked to stay in their houses and advised them to contact the designated official for any help including supply of milk, vegetables and other essential commodities.

For instance, the Suryapet Municipal Commissioner announced 14 out of 34 wards as red zones and appealed to the people not to venture out without any prior information to the authorities.

The municipal authorities stepped up vigil in coordination with the police and Revenue department and monitoring the movement of the people in every street.

The timings for anyone to come out to buy essential commodities in the markets from red zone free wards has also been reduced to two hours from four hours in the mornings, officials said, adding that those who did not use face masks were also barred from visiting the markets.

A single person from each family only is being permitted during the visiting hours.

The municipal authorities said that the threat of the spread of virus was more in the urban bodies in old Adilabad, Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Nalgonda and Ranga Reddy districts from where a majority of infected persons attended the recently held Markaj religious meeting in New Delhi which triggered panic in Telangana.

The Health department has taken up a survey and warned of spread of virus in the communities. Based on the outcome of the survey reports, red zones were declared in the identified municipalities.

Officials said the next one week lockdown period is crucial and the major challenge before the government is to contain the spread of the virus.

The MAUD Secretary is holding regular teleconferences with all municipal commissioners and taking stock of the situation. The municipal authorities also accorded top priority to drinking water supply and garbage collection to ensure the cleanliness of the towns.