East Godavari district has seen more than 22,700 COVID-19 cases and 47 deaths in the past week, with 30 out of 100 people infected with the dreaded disease.
More than 29,000 patients are being treated across the district as the cities of Kakinada and Rajamahendravaram remain the hot spots for the spread of the disease. In the 24 hours ending Sunday morning, the district recorded 2,876 new cases and nine deaths.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Health, the highest number of 3,432 cases was reported on May 14. As of May 13, over 10,000 cases were recorded in three days.
Meanwhile, Joint Collector G. Lakshmisha said a mile-long pipeline would be laid connecting the AP Paper Mill to the ESI Hospital to deliver 15 kilos of medical oxygen in Rajamahendravararam.
“We are slowly creating the necessary infrastructure and increasing the medical oxygen production capacity in the district to minimize dependence on Visakhapatnam and Odisha city,” he said.
The oxygen production unit, funded by the Vedanta Group, will begin production shortly and is expected to meet the demand from Rajamahendravaram.
Joint collector G. Rajakumari said an additional 400 beds would be provided at the COVID Care Center on the JNTU Kakinada campus.