Kerala govt assures strict action against those who violate COVID-19 guidelines

Kerala Health Minister KK Shailaja said that strict action will be taken against those who violate the COVID-19 guidelines issued by the government. This comes after 130 COVID-19 cases were confirmed in three old-age care homes in the state. The minister said that another 35 people, including nuns at the Shanti Bhavan in Kochuthura, Thiruvananthapuram, have been infected by the disease

"A sister had earlier died at the Thrikkakkara Karunalayam Care Home due to COVID-19. Another death of COVID positive patient was also reported in a care home but the person was in a critical condition due to old age and illnesses. On subsequent inspections, the health department found that inmates of S D Convent Chunangamvely and Samaritan Pazhanganad were infected with the disease. As many as 95 cases were confirmed in three institutions in Ernakulam," Shailaja said.

According to the Minister, elderly people are the ones who get into a critical condition quickly after getting infected by Coronavirus. 

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Earlier on July 30, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the government was using all its resources to fight the pandemic while Health Minister K K Shailaja said the state would put up a combined battle against the virus, whose tally stood at 22,297 with 70 fatalities as of date.

The opposition Congress criticised the government over the handling of the pandemic, claiming it was a "total failure" in the past six months. It was on January 30 that the state reported the first COVID-19 case in the country when a woman medical student tested positive on her return to the state from Wuhan in China, the epicentre of Coronavirus.

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