With the nationwide lockdown set to end in two days, Tamil Nadu is yet to decide on an exit strategy for the state's 37 districts. The fact that 26 of these districts have currently (as of Thursday) been classified under the red zone, has put a dampener on any plans to restore normalcy. But experts suggest that aggressive levels of testing along with a phased removal of lockdown, will have to be implemented to truly try and contain the coronavirus from spreading.
In districts deemed as red zones, the restrictions of lockdown will continue to apply and may not be lifted post May 3. Moreover, intra-district and inter-district travel will also be subjected to restrictions.
The Centre, meanwhile, has only classified 12 districts as red zones while 24 have been labelled orange zones. In Kerala too there was a similar situation, where Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had classified Kozhikode district as a hotspot although the Centre hadn't.
According to maps provided by the state health department, red zones are those which have over 15 cases or where the doubling time of cases is less than 4 days. Orange zones are those which have less than 15 cases or new cases in the last 14 days. And finally green zones are areas where there are no new cases in the last 28 days.
A zone can shift from red to orange if it does not record new cases in 14 days and it can shift to green if the gap increases to 28 days.
Currently, the districts that fall under the red zone in Tamil Nadu include - Tirunelveli (63) , Tenkasi (38), Thoothukudi (27), Ramanathapuram (18), Virudhunagar (32), Madurai (84), Theni (43), Dindigul (80), Tiruppur (112), Karur (42), Coimbatore (141), Tiruchirapalli (51), Thanjavur (5%), Tiruvarur (29), Nagapattinam (44), Cuddalore(28), Namakkal (61), Salem (32), Villupuram (50), Chengalpattu (78), Tirupattur (18), Kancheepuram (26), Ranipet (40), Vellore (22). Tiruvallur (55) and Chennai (906).
Districts that fall under the orange zone are - Tiruvannamalai (15), Dharmapuri (1), Kallakurichi (9), Nilgiris (9), Erode (70), Perambalur (9), Ariyalur (7), Pudukkottai (1), Sivagangai (12) and Kanyakumari (16).
The only district in the green zone, with no recorded cases is Krishangiri.
Speaking to TNM, Senthilnathan, former health officer of the Chennai Corporation, says testing is the only way to determine whether regulations can be relaxed in red zones.
"Even as they lower barriers and reduce restrictions, aggressive testing has to be done across the state and based on these results, further action can be taken," he says.
Dr P Kuganathan, another former health officer, meanwhile, points out that relaxations come at the cost of residents getting infected.
"Even after the lockdown social distancing and hygiene will be paramount," he says. "Crowds will not be allowed to gather at any cost and even if public transport is back in force, the number of persons travelling at any point of time will be reduced," he adds.
"The fact that we have so many red zones marked in the state is an indication of a strong public health system. The Health Department is doing a meticulous job and taking no risks. The search and identification of cases is thorough and identifying more hot spots will mean better monitoring and surveillance of the spread of infection," says Kuganathan.