Calling a district 'corona free' without conducting tests is nothing but mass killing: Telangana Congress leader

Calling a district 'corona free' without conducting tests is nothing but mass killing, said the Congress party on Wednesday while slamming Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao-led State government.

"The KCR-led government has badly handled the COVID-19 situation. The Central government, the High Court and all agencies have criticised the Telangana government for the lowest test rate in the country. Instead of taking corrective measures, KCR is getting angry against those who are questioning him. What does effective handling of COVID-19 situation mean? Should it not be the identification of patients and giving them treatment," asked Gudur Narayan Reddy, state Congress party leader, while speaking to .

He further said: "The Chief Minister is pushing lakhs of lives in danger. Calling a district 'corona free' without conducting tests is nothing but mass killing. Today except for containment zones, KCR has declared rest of the State as Green Zones."

The Congress leader urged for clarification from KCR on "why the State government was so reluctant to conduct tests. Was it due to lack of funds, testing kits or the guts to face the truth?"

"KCR and Health Minister Etela Rajender are in self-praise mode. Their false claim that their work is being appreciated by the Centre, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the whole world. However, Central government, ICMR, High Court, other State governments and media have criticised Telangana for not doing an adequate number of COVID-19 testing," Reddy said.

As per the latest update by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of positive cases of coronavirus in the State stands at 1,634, including 1,011 cured/discharged, 585 active cases and 38 deaths.

( With inputs from ANI )