The tough measures initiated by the Telangana government seems to have paid off. The Inter-Ministerial Central Team that visited the red zones and hotspots in Telangana gave a ‘positive’ report to the government’s initiatives in preventing and containing the spread of the virus in the state.
The ICMT team monitored hotspot areas for four days in the state and assessed health infrastructure, disaster management, hospitalization facilities in the state, shelter homes, drug stores, availability of beds, number of hospitals and care centres dedicated to Covid-19 management. Each team constituted six members including a senior public health specialist and a senior officer of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
The central team also reviewed the facilities at the Gachibowli Covid-19 hospital, Gandhi Hospital, King Kothi Hospital and other medical facilities set up by the Telangana government. The team assessed the level of testing, availability of PPE and masks for health professionals, availability of oxygen beds, ICUs, number of surveillance teams. After a thorough assessment, the team submitted a detailed report on the situation in the state and found that the government has put best practices to prevent and contain the spread of Covid-19 in the state.
The team found that there was adequate stockpile of PPEs, N95 masks, gloves and other medical gear. The Telangana government had used the end-to-end IT dashboard in monitoring and tracking right from testing to discharge of patients. After visiting the Gandhi Hosptial, the team in its report stated that the government followed all the protocols in treating the patients and contain the spread of the virus. It found that the hospital authorities conducted around 300 tests each day and that 93 per cent of the cases were treated at the hospital.
The team visited the government quarantine centre established at Ayurvedic Hospital at Erragadda and enquired about the arrangements and facilities made for the quarantine purpose. The team also visited a containment zone in Gajularamaram in Kukatpally zone and inspected the arrangement and precautions taken as per the covid-19 containment guidelines. They held interactions with the residents on supply of essential commodities and other emergency services. The team visited Humanyun Nagar containment zones in Khairatabad and Masab Tank to review measures to control the spread of coronavirus and found the measures initiated by the government satisfactory. During their visit to Humayun Nagar, the team enquired with GHMC officials how services were being provied to the residents. The team found that the GHMC was providing breakfast, lunch and dinner in packets to houses directly through local volunteers.
Further, the team found that the Hyderabad police had deployed drones at certain spots in Hyderabad as part of the effort to enforce complete lockdown and track violators.
