The number of cases being reported in Andhra Pradesh is surging upwards at a rapid pace as 26 patients tested positive during the day on Sunday, taking the overall tally past the 250 mark to 252, with Kurnool district fast becoming the hotbed of the pandemic.
In all, 62 cases were added in the state since Saturday night.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy over the phone on Sunday evening and discussed the situation in the wake of the mounting number of positive cases, primarily due to the attendees of the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi.
The two discussed the measures being taken to contain the disease as well as the facilities for the affected persons, official sources said.
COVID-19 cases, which were just four till yesterday, shot up to 27 since Saturday night and further up to 53 by Sunday evening in Kurnool district, as per the latest bulletin of the Medical and Health Department.
Close to 190 people from Kurnool district attended the Jamaat event in New Delhi, the largest delegation from AP, and this was clearly reflecting in the increasing number of coronavirus cases from the district, official sources said.
"Results of more tests from the district are awaited while many persons and their contacts still remain to be tested. The numbers may go up further," the sources added.
While Kurnool topped the state list with 53 cases, Nellore came second with 34 and Guntur third with 30 cases. More than 90 people from Guntur and 70 from Nellore district attended the Jamaat event.
With five coronavirus patients discharged from hospitals after recovery, and the death of a 55-year old man, the number of active cases in the state stood at 246, according to the latest bulletin.
The two north coastal Andhra districts of Srikakulam and Vizianagaram are the only ones that remain unaffected by the virus as they did not record a single positive case so far.
The state government has also placed the residential locations of people testing positive for coronavirus, on a 'red alert' list, to enable greater monitoring and also ensure that such areas are quarantined properly.
On Saturday, Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy had appealed to the people to refrain from blaming any particular community for the spread of COVID-19 in the state.