COVID-19 situation improving in Guwahati, admits Himanta Biswa Sarma

Guwahati: Assam health and finance minister Himanta Biswa Sarma today admitted that the COVID-19 situation is improving in Guwahati city, which was formerly designated as a COVID-19 hotspot after a massive spike in cases.

"Situation is improving in Guwahati; during the peak of the outbreak, we had reported 777 cases on July 4. Presently, we are below 300 cases each day. On top of that, we are conducting almost 50,000 tests daily. We are following the test, track, treat, isolate principle", Sarma told scribes here.

The minister -- who has been at the forefront of the state's battle against the infectious disease -- said that Guwahati's change in fortunes is likely due to the complete lockdown that has been in place since June 28. "Due to following lockdown for 2 weeks, the situation has improved. If people keep observing safety guidelines such as wearing masks and social distancing, we will be well-poised for further improving the situation", Sarma told the press.

If the guidelines on social distancing and wearing of masks once again go for a toss, Sarma opined, the city which is still under lockdown, could be headed to yet another COVID-19 outbreak. Much to the amusement of the gathered scribes, the minister compared the COVID-19 situation in Guwahati to a game of snake and ladders, wherein a player can lose painstakingly climbed spots after being "bitten" by a snake.

The tally in Assam has risen to 40,269 after the detection of 1,862 more coronavirus cases on Friday, July 31. Of these, Kamrup (M) reported the highest number of cases with 281 infections. However, the number seems tame in comparison to the tallies recorded in the early part of July, when it had become a norm for more than 500 cases to de detected on a daily basis. On the same day, 1,277 people were discharged from hospitals across the state after recovering from the contagious disease, bringing the number of discharges close to that of fresh infections.

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