Chittoor district reports over 2,700 cases for 2nd consecutive day

Tirupati: For the second consecutive day, Chittoor district reported more than 2,700 Covid positive cases. While 2,764 people got infected as per the report on Friday, the figure has gone up by four to reach 2,768 on Saturday.

To control the rampant growth of Covid in the district, Collector M Hari Narayanan has appointed special officers for each constituency. The two Joint Collectors V Veerabrahmam and N Rajasekhar will have overall supervision of the situation while 14 senior officials will look after the task in the 14 constituencies.

They have to coordinate with already appointed nodal officers and monitor the Covid testing, vaccinations, Covid management, arrangements at Covid hospitals, Covid care centres and quarantine centres. By reviewing the situation on a daily basis they have to focus on preventing the spread of the virus in their respective constituencies, the Collector said.

The government also announced new tariff for Covid treatment in private hospitals in view of the complaints it has been receiving on the overcharging at these hospitals. The Collector said that the private hospitals should abide by the new tariff and any deviation will be dealt with seriously.

All the hospitals should notify the new tariff at the hospitals and all Covid notified hospitals should admit the patients invariably. No hospital should collect advance fees from any patients, he said.

Earlier, the Collector paid a surprise visit to the TTD-run BIRRD hospital in Tirupati along with Joint Collector V Veerabrahmam. Hospital special officer Dr R Reddeppa Reddy told the Collector that the TTD has allotted 150 beds for Covid patients. It has one kilo litre oxygen storage capacity and steps are being taken to enhance the capacity to six kilo litres.

Meanwhile, former MP Chinta Mohan lambasted both the Centre and State governments saying that they had failed miserably in providing better medical care to Covid patients. Due to this, one patient in every five minutes was losing his life in hospitals and hundreds of dead bodies are waiting in a queue line for cremation.

He said that the country has been witnessing such a grave situation for the first time since Independence. The State government should divert all funds to the rescue of Covid patients in hospitals. There is a need to provide more beds, ventilators and oxygen cylinders to all major hospitals forthwith.

Mohan demanded that the vaccination process for people above 18 years should be started immediately.

The NEET PG examination should be cancelled this year and the lakhs of MBBS graduates should be pressed into service to take care of Covid patients.