HYDERABAD: A family get-together organized by a meat seller of the city in utter disregard for COVID-19 preventive measures has ended up as a super-spreader for the dreaded virus on Tuesday. As many as 22 people, including the mutton trader and his 13-member family, tested positive for Coronavirus in Pahadi Shareef area of the old city.

The mutton trader is among many in our midst who seem to be taking the dangers of the Coronavirus pandemic very casually. Recently, he hosted a get-together for the near and dear at his house in Pahadi Shareef. As fate would have it, 22 attendees of the party have now been shifted to quarantine after they tested positive. Among them are the meat seller, his brother and their respective families besides their parents, in all 14 in number.

It is being suspected that the 22 affected people might have contracted the virus from their close relatives from Jiyaguda. Besides the mutton seller’s family, the other relatives who attended the party are identified as those hailing from Gowlipura, Borabanda, Santosh Nagar and Harsha Guda, The samples of 14 members of the meat seller’s family besides three of those from Borabanda, two of Santosh Nagar and four of those from Harsha Guda have been confirmed as Coronavirus positive case. The results of some other samples are awaited.
Following this, the authorities have swung into action and began tracing the contacts of the meat seller and the other infected people from the get-together.

The officials inspected the areas including Jiyaguda, Gowlipura, Santhoshnagar, Maheswaram, Borabanda and barricaded the containment zones. Also, 40 medical teams were deployed for door-to-door survey. As of now, 21 members were identified as primary contacts while 47 members as secondary contacts.