After Hyderabad family holds engagement function, 16 test positive for Coronavirus

Failure to adhere to lockdown protocols is now proving to be an Achilles heel for a family in Hyderabad. Violating all rules, the family had organised an engagement ceremony on May 11, which has now become a trigger point for the spread of coronavirus in the city's Dhoolpet area. 16 out of 22 from the family of the bridegroom have now tested positive. What's more, the groom's father died on Saturday, though the family says it was due to a heart attack. 

According to Hyderabad police, the family resides in Jhingur Basti in Dhoolpet. They had organised an engagement ceremony at a function hall in Rampura on May 11. Though there were only a few people who trickled in when the function started, authorities claimed that nearly 200 guests ended up attending the function.

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Police intervenes

When the local police station received information on the huge gathering, they rushed to the venue to find only about 50 people at the venue. The police immediately locked the function hall and started collecting data of the attendees from the family. 

The bridegroom's family were directed to take tests for coronavirus. The fear of authorities turned true when 16 out of 22 reportedly tested positive for the virus. Four people in the 32 to 35 age bracket and five children including a two-year-old child tested positive. One family member who has breathing difficulty is said to be critical. 

55-year-old groom's father was admitted to Chest hospital on Saturday but died while being shifted to Gandhi Hospital. The family members, however, claimed that he died of a heart attack. 

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Officials are now fretting as to how many more guests from the function could be affected. They are now tracing down the people who attended the function. Meanwhile, the police have barricaded the area at Jhingur Basti in Dhoolpet and have restricted the movement of residents. The police is also inquiring how the function hall management gave permission to conduct the function defying lockdown orders. 

According to data available, Telangana has reported 42 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, taking the overall count of Covid-19 cases in the state to 1,551. Of the positive cases detected on May 17, 37 hail from Hyderabad district, three are migrants and two persons from Rangareddy district. Health officials also discharged 21 patients who had recovered on Sunday, taking the total number of recovered people to 992 in the state.

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