Casual approach to pandemic blunts COVID-19 fight in Telugu states

If a sense of complacency marks Telangana’s response to the implementation of lockdown, it is politics-as-usual in the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh where the Jagan Mohan Reddy government refuses to take any break from pursuing vendetta politics even in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

The contention of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi government is that an overwhelming majority of the coronavirus positive cases in the state can be attributed to the delegates who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi last month or their primary contacts like immediate family members and relatives and a few secondary contacts.

“If the Nizamuddin event had not happened, Telangana would have remained a completely safe zone. However, we are stretching every nerve in contact tracing, testing and quarantining the affected people to check the spread,” Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said.

Telangana has recorded 531 coronavirus positive cases while the death toll has risen to 16 as of Monday (April 13) and as many as 103 COVID-19 patients have been discharged from hospitals so far after recovery.

What has lulled the TRS government into a comfort zone is the assessment that, barring Tablighi cluster, the state has not imported cases from anywhere else nor has there been any kind of community spread. The experts warn that such a complacent approach could be misleading because enough testing has not been done to determine the extent of the spread and the nature of other clusters.

Related news: Beware, lockdown violators, drones are watching you

The chief minister and his cabinet colleagues have repeatedly appealed to the Tablighi delegates to voluntarily come forward and get tested for the virus. “This is for their own safety and for the safety and well-being of their family members. Coronavirus spread can be stopped if people remain in their homes and are more vigilant,” said KCR, as the chief minister is popularly known.

The implementation of the lockdown, particularly in the capital Hyderabad, leaves much to be desired. One can find an almost normal traffic on the roads during day time with no police restrictions.

“On a normal day, it takes me one hour to reach my office from home. Now, it is taking me a bit less than that. No big difference. I find people taking a very casual approach to the lockdown,” a senior journalist from the city said.

The focus of the city police has been to ensure a complete lockdown during the night, from 7 PM to 6 AM, but the enforcement has been anything but strict during the daytime.

“It is obvious that most of the people are out for a drive, to enjoy the empty roads,” Jayaram said.

A couple of run-ins that journalists had with the police in the first two days of the lockdown seem to be the primary reason for the police to go easy on restrictions.

What lockdown?

“Lockdown? Kaika lockdown? (What lockdown?)” was the response of a biker in a typical Hyderabadi style. “Nobody is stopping me on the road. I am just visiting a friend of mine in a nearby locality,” the youth said.

The warning by the Cyberabad Police that stringent action would be taken against the lockdown violators appears to have had no impact on the people who are going about their normal routine.

While the IT hubs like Gachibowli, Madhapur, Miyapur, and Hitech City are seeing minimal traffic, the impact of the lockdown is hardly visible in areas like Kukatpally, Punjagutta, and Begumpet.

“Only vehicles of essential supplies and those belonging to emergency services are allowed during the day time. But, we also find motorists roaming around casually. When stopped, they cite medical reasons and come up with silly excuses,” Assistant Commissioner of Police, Thirupathanna said.

Related news: Migrant exodus shows lack of preparedness in AP, Telangana

“We are registering cases against those coming out unnecessarily during the lockdown period. The vehicles too are being seized. Until now, more than 700 vehicles were seized,” he said.

The main reason for the general lack of seriousness is the messaging failure on the part of the government.

However, Telangana is among the states which announced extension of the lockdown till April 30.

“Lockdown and social distancing is the only way to break the virus chain and check the spread of the disease,” the state Medical and Health Minister E Rajender said.

Non-stop vindictive politics

The coronavirus crisis does not seem to have made much of a difference to the ongoing vindictive politics that has been the hallmark of Andhra Pradesh since the change of guard in May last year.

Despite the hardships being faced by common people due to lockdown and lack of essential supplies, the YSR Congress government found itself embroiled in a bitter showdown with the State Election Commissioner (SEC) N Ramesh Kumar, a 1982 batch IAS officer seen as being close to the opposition Telugu Desam Party president and former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu.

The confrontation over the conduct of elections to urban and rural bodies had acquired political overtones, culminating in the unceremonious removal of the senior bureaucrat.

The SEC’s decision to defer the local body polls did not go down well with the YSRCP government which, in an unprecedented move, promulgated an ordinance removing him from the post.

Related news: Withdrawal hits tipplers in Telangana as lockdown keeps booze out

Simultaneously, it issued a string of government orders (GOs), curtailing the term of office of the SEC from five years to three years through an amendment to the Andhra Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act, 1994. It is not a coincidence that Ramesh Kumar, appointed during the previous TDP regime, has already completed three years in office. Another GO was issued, appointing former Madras high court judge V Kanagaraj as the SEC.

The elections to local bodies were scheduled to be held on March 31. But, the SEC deferred the polls indefinitely, citing the coronavirus pandemic threat. He also transferred collectors and superintendents of police in some districts, citing their alleged partisan attitude favouring the ruling party that prevented the opposition parties from even filing nominations in many places.

Poor facilities

Ironically, the political showdown with the SEC was happening at a time when the medical and paramedical staff in the state were grappling with grossly inadequate infrastructure to deal with the COVID-19 patients.

There are very few testing laboratories in the state. Kurnool in Rayalaseema region is one of the hotspots in the state and witnessed a sudden spurt in coronavirus positive cases. But, it does not have a virology lab for testing. The samples are collected and referred either to the Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences (SVIMS) in Tirupati or to Anantapur district for confirmation.

West Godavari, the native district of health minister A.K. Srinivas, also does not have a testing lab.

Related news: Andhra Pradesh defers salaries of CM, govt staff to help combat COVID-19

There is only one lab in Visakhapatnam for the whole north coastal region. A senior doctor, Sudhakar, heading an area hospital at Narsipatnam in the notified tribal area in Visakhapatnam, raised his voice over the lack of basic facilities, including personal protective equipment (PPE), face masks and kits. He was later suspended by the government, citing violation of conduct rules.

Unlike, Telangana which has extended the lockdown till this month end, AP Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy favoured continuation of the lockdown only in the identified ‘red zone’ clusters in the state. Out of a total of 676 revenue mandals in the state, 37 have been identified as red zones and 44 as orange zones.

As of Monday (April 13), 432 patients have recovered from coronavirus  and seven people have died.