Telangana’s Director of Public Health and Family Welfare (DPH), Dr G Srinivasa Rao has rubbished claims of a lockdown or night curfew in the state. “We have already said that there will be no night curfew and lockdown in the state under any circumstances. Once again, we make the same point clear. There is no truth in the news appearing on social media about a lockdown at the end of January,” he stated.
On December 30, Telangana's Health Department said that the Omicron variant of the coronavirus could mark the beginning of the third wave of the pandemic. Dr Rao had said that the next two to four weeks will be critical for the state and for the entire country due to the surge in cases. "Omicron has already spread in the community. Everybody is vulnerable but it is in the hands of every person to protect himself," he said.
The DPH advised people not to panic but at the same time remain alert and take all precautions. Dr Rao added that taking lessons from the second wave, the government has taken all steps to tackle a potential third wave. These include testing, surveillance, treatment and keeping medicines and human resources readily available. However, he advised people to continue taking precautions such as wearing a mask, maintaining physical distance, washing hands frequently and getting vaccinated.
Speaking about a possible third wave, he said that it may not last long, but in the short term the country may see an unprecedented surge. "Earlier we saw over a lakh daily cases in India and over 10,000 cases in Telangana but in coming days this could be five times higher or even more. There is no need for panic because we have created awareness among people about the disease," he assured.
On January 3, Telangana saw 482 COVID-19 cases in the state, 212 recoveries and one death. Of the total cases, 294 were in the limits of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation.
Meanwhile, Hyderabad’s popular trade fair Numaish was temporarily closed on Sunday just a day after it was thrown open to the public, amid rising COVID-19 cases in the state. The trade fair has been suspended till January 10, authorities said.