AP CM YS Jagan urges people to stay wherever they are amid coronavirus

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has urged people to stay wherever they are to mitigate the risk of spreading coronavirus. Speaking at a press meet held at his camp office in Tadepalli on Thursday, Chief Minister YS Jagan said, “It is to be noted that coronavirus can be overcome only with self-discipline. We have seen from the cases of other countries how negligence could result in catastrophic results. Therefore, we need to take some strong decisions in such situations.”

Referring to the incident on Wednesday where several individuals tried returning to Andhra Pradesh at the state border, Mr. Reddy shared, “The situation is such that we can’t invite our own people with a smile. Yesterday, we had to allow 44 people into the state on humanitarian grounds. These individuals have been placed under quarantine. Similar situations arose at a few other places in the state today as well. I request everyone to stay wherever they are and avoid travelling during these 21 days, till 14 April. Once a person moves from one place to another, the task of contact tracing can become extremely difficult. When people remain confined to their homes without moving, contact tracing will become much manageable and it is possible to contain the spread of the infection. I have also spoken to Telangana Chief Minister KCR and he has assured total assistance in this regard”

The Chief Minister noted that about 80.9% of coronavirus cases are healed just by staying at home. 14% require hospitalisation while 4.9% require intensive care. Stating that people above 60 years of age and ailing with other complications such as diabetes and blood sugar are more susceptible to coronavirus, he requested people not to venture out of their homes.

Sharing details regarding the coronavirus situation in Andhra Pradesh, the Chief Minister informed that 10 positive cases have been reported so far. “We need to stand together to ensure that the cases don’t increase in number. As many as 27,819 foreign returnees have been tracked and kept under surveillance. We have set up 4 critical care hospitals dedicated only to the treatment of COVID-19 patients. The State Government is leaving no stone unturned in tackling the crisis,” CM YS Jagan said at the press meet.

He further informed that helpline number 1902 can be reached by citizens for all non-health related queries while 104 can be contacted for issues and queries related to health. “There are adequate stocks of essential commodities in the state. There’s no need to panic. We are also decentralising rythu bazaars by setting them up within radii of 2-3 km for the convenience of the public. I urge the citizens to come out of homes between 6 AM and 1 PM only for essential services,” the Chief Minister said.

On this note, he also applauded the efforts of grama volunteers, Asha workers, doctors, medical staff, and the police department in these tough times.