Telangana shows the way in tackling Covid

State has lowest number of active cases in South India and is among top three in saving most lives and managing new infections

Hyderabad: A year into the pandemic, Telangana has emerged amongst top Indian States to have handled the Covid infections effectively. Not only Telangana has the lowest number of active cases in South India, it is also among top three States to have saved most lives and manage new infections well.

In fact, in the Economic Survey of 2020-21, Telangana was praised for ramping-up Covid testing at the right time, ensuring there is proper management of positive cases and having less number of Covid deaths.

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As on Sunday, among all southern States, Telangana has the lowest number of Covid fatalities at 1,616 followed by Kerala at 3,971, Andhra Pradesh with 7,162, Karnataka with 12,263 and Tamil Nadu with 12,413 fatalities.

Telangana also has the lowest cumulative number of Covid positive cases in the south at 2,96,574 and second lowest number of active cases at 1,748. The State with lowest burden of active cases in the south is AP with 797 positive cases.

Like any other State, initial months of the pandemic were a struggle, as authorities looked for appropriate strategies to contain Covid. However, as months went by, new infections rose in other States but started to decrease in Telangana.

The drop in Covid cases and fatalities started when health authorities launched Covid rapid tests at 1,070 testing centres in Telangana, enabling quick identification and treatment of patients. The positive cases needing institutional care were quickly admitted to hospitals while the remaining patients were kept under home-based treatment and their condition was monitored via telemedicine by employing Home Isolation and Monitoring (HITAM) app.

The strategy of early diagnosis, quick hospital and home-based care also ensured that there was no major surge in demand for hospital beds and needy patients got access to beds. The rapid tests were used to identify and contain the infection in the community and the RTPCR was largely used in the hospitals, which helped the State to contain the disease and deaths, senior officials said. The willingness of general public to embrace use of masks, physical distancing and hand hygiene also helped Telangana fight Covid effectively.

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