Some people are complacent, don’t use masks: Official

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai:25.05.2020

As containment efforts intensify across the city, officials say in some parts of the city, residents of slum areas are finding it difficult to adapt to wearing masks all through the day. The residents also have a false sense of complacency that they would either not get infected, or that it would not affect them in a big way, say health offcials. This is because they have witnessed many asymptomatic cases who have recovered and returned home within 8-10 days.

Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) officials, hence, have started conducting intensive drives across major slum areas in the city and are distributing masks, kabasura kudineer and soaps.

On Sunday, special Covid-19 officer deputed to GCC J Radhakrishnan and official on deputation to Anna Nagar zone S Gopal Sundarraj visited the Naduvankarai Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) tenements to speak directly to the residents.

Radhakrishnan told the residents that in some slum localities in the city, it was observed that three or five people in the same family had contracted the infection. “People are not wearing the masks thinking that the disease won’t affect them. Those going out wear masks but those inside the house don’t,” he said. If senior citizens contract the disease, it could prove dangerous, Radhakrishnan said, adding that it was our duty to ensure that we don’t lose any lives.

In some areas of Koyambedu, it was found that wearing masks and consuming kabasura kudineer regularly was having a good impact as the cases had dropped, Radhakrishnan said.

The other important directive to be followed was to wash hands. “I visit many places but earlier wasn’t wearing gloves. I was told to wear it and I made the change,” he said.

The residents were also directed to not self-medicate in case they had fever or other symptoms. “Don’t run to the medical shop and pop pills. Ensure that you report to the local doctor and take medical advice,” Radhakrishnan said.

SAFETY FIRST: Cases dropped significantly in areas where people wore masks and drank kabasura kudineer, special officer J Radhakrishnan said