As a second positive case of coronavirus was reported in the state on Thursday, the Andhra Pradesh government issued a Stay at Home notice to all those who returned from overseas and decided to keep all major temples, including Lord Venkateswara's abode atop Tirumala, closed for devotees to contain the spread of the virus.
Places of worship belonging to all other religions will also be kept out of bounds for devotees while the state government ordered cinema theatres and malls to stay shut till March 31 from Friday.
Already, all educational institutions have been asked to close till the month end to check the spread of coronavirus.
The annual public examination for Class X students, scheduled to begin on March 31, will be held as usual to avoid inconvenience to students, Education Minister A Suresh said.
The Centre appointed senior IAS officer S Suresh Kumar as the nodal officer for the state for effective management of coronavirus which has affected 173 people in the country with four deaths so far.
Besides the cash-rich Lord Venkateswara temple near Tirupati thronged by devotees from across the country, others that would be barred for pilgrims' entry include the Kanaka Durga shrine in Vijayawada, Srisailam (Lord Shiva), Annavaram (Satyanarayana Swamy) and Kanipakam (Vinayaka), Deputy Chief Minister for Medical and Health A K K Srinivas (Nani) said.
"The daily rituals in all these temples will, however, be performed by the priests. Only the devotees will not be allowed, he said, briefing reporters after a high-level review meeting on Covid-19, chaired by Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy here.
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He said the government took these decisions to check the spread of the dreaded disease though relatively the incidence of COVID-19 was low in the state.
A report from Tirupati said all routes, including the stairway, leading to Tirumala have been sealed from Thursday evening itself to stop pilgrims inflow.
The devotees who have already reached the hills alone would be allowed to the shrine till the forenoon on Friday, Executive Officer of the Tirumala Tirupati Devathanams (TTD), that governs the over 2,000-year old shrine, Anil Kumar Singhal told reporters in Tirumala.
He said this would be the first time in recent history that the temple would be closed for devotees for over a week.
Andhra Pradesh is the latest to join a number of states, including Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, that have announced a virutal lockdown ordering closure of malls, resorts, theatres among other places of large public gathering to battle the deadly virus.
Srinivas said Bars and restaurants were being asked to enforce social distancing and it had been suggested that IT professionals could work from home.
The Deputy CM asked the people to cooperate with the government in COVID-19 mitigation measures.
Srinivas suggested that people put off marriages and other functions to avoid large gatherings.
Otherwise, ensure that the gathering is not large, he added.
Earlier in the day, a young man who returned to the state from England on March 15 tested positive for the deadly virus, the state Health Department said.
The youngster has been admitted to an isolation ward in RIMS at Ongole and his condition is stable, the department said in a release.
The man, who left London on the 12th, reached Ongole on the 15th and was admitted to the government hospital after he complained of fever, cough and cold.
His blood sample was sent to the virology lab in Tirupati where it tested positive.
On March 12, another person who returned to his native Nellore from Italy was the first confirmed case of coronavirus in AP. He is currently in isolation in the government hospital in Nellore.
His blood sample would be tested once again after the end of the 14-day period and discharged, Special Chief Secretary (Health) K S Jawahar Reddy said.
Of the total 117 samples sent for examination, 103 tested negative.
While two were positive, result of the remaining 12 was awaited, the Special CS added.
Jawahar Reddy said a Stay at Home notice has been issued to all foreign returnees, asking them to self-quarantine at home.
If they disobey the order, they will be liable for punishment under relevant Indian Penal Code Section, he warned.