The grandchild of a truck driver, who tested positive for coronavirus in Wayanad, has also contracted the disease, Collector Dr Adeela Abdulla said on Monday.
“The mother is negative. The child is from Tirunelli, which is a panchayat that has already been locked down. So there are no new changes,” Dr Adeela said.
Wayanad has eight active cases as of Monday evening. The Collector informed that 1,885 people in the district are under surveillance. People from other districts put up in hotel quarantine are being sent to their home districts, she said.
“We have taken 1,600 samples for testing – 713 of these are routine, and 825 are as part of sentinel surveillance to check community spread. There are also 170 augmented samples. We have received 645 negative results so far. Among the new cases, two have come from Koyambedu market and others have got it through contact. There is no case where contact has not been traced, so there is no need of fear,” Collector Adeela said.
Wayanad had been COVID-19 free for over a month when a truck driver came from Koyambedu in Chennai to his home in Mananthavady and tested positive for the disease. His mother, wife and the co-driver’s son also tested positive later.
The district authorities are checking the route maps of the primary contacts. “We have put full restrictions in Mananthavady, Tirunelli and Edavaka panchayats,” she said.
The number of people allowed to return to Wayanad through the Muthanga check post has been raised from 400 to 800, Dr Adeela informed.
The Collector warned that strict action will be taken against those trying to instil fear through fake campaigns on social media.
Cases will be also registered against those violating quarantine norms, the Collector added. “There will also be cases against parents if minor children are found indulging in football or other such group games,” she warned.
Twenty nonresident Indians have so far come to the district after the lockdown has been relaxed. Paid quarantine options have been arranged in 20 hotels, Dr Adeela said.
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