All medical shops and pharmacies in Hyderabad have been instructed to take down contact details of persons with fever and other symptoms of the coronavirus disease approaching them for medicines. The phone number and name of the person buying the medicines are to be handed over to officials with the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation. The decision was taken by the Telangana Principal Secretary's office and will come into effect after discussion with medical shop owners and pharmacy associations.
In his letter to the GHMC, Arvind Kumar, Principal Secretary, Municipal Administration and Urban Development said, "It was observed that due to some level of hesitation and perceived social stigma, people suffering from fever, cough, etc and other symptoms which might be similar to that with the virus are approaching the medical shops directly on their own and asking for fever medicines etc".
The Principal Secretary asked GHMC to proactively follow up on these cases. The aim is to contact these patients and get a test conducted depending on their symptoms.
The GHMC has been asked to meet with medical shop and pharmacist associations and issue necessary instructions.
The shop keepers are also expected to tell customers that the data collection is for their benefit.
There are over 221 areas in Telangana that have been declared ‘containment zones’, with a large chunk of them – at least 126 according to the government – falling under the jurisdiction of the GHMC. The task of managing these containment zones, contact tracing and keeping tabs of those under quarantine in coordination with the health department is also being done by GHMC.