BERHAMPUR: Amid the deteriorating Covid- 19 situation in Ganjam, lack of a coordinated effort by the administration and law enforcement agencies has seemingly thrown a spanner in management of the crisis.
Till mid-June, the Covid-19 situation was under control due to the relentless efforts of both the administration and police officials.
But things started to fall apart after a reported tiff between a policeman and an administrative official over wearing of mask.
Last month, a team of officials led by a sub-collector fined a havildar for not wearing mask at Kamapali square.
In retaliation, the policemen fined the sub-collector’s driver for not using mask. The incident snow-balled into a controversy which was later sorted out with the intervention of senior officials. But it divided the police and administrative staff, thereby affecting the execution of Covid-19 measures in the district.
On Friday, the fish market at Kamapali over-bridge was found crowded with people violating the social distancing norm.
The photo of the fish market went viral on social media with Ganjam Collector warning to seal shops found violat ing the Covid-19 guidelines.
Ironically, Kamapali overbridge is situated in close proximity to Baidyanathpur police station and hardly 500 metre from the police headquarters.
Surprisingly, no police personnel reached the spot to disperse the crowd though the gathering continued for hours together.
Residents and intellectuals appealed to the district administration to sort out the differences between officials for the larger interest of public. Given the present situation, united efforts are needed to beat the virus, they said.
In the last 24 hours, another 116 positive cases were detected in Ganjam, taking the tally to 2,182 including 20 deaths.
On Friday, the district had reported its highest single-day spike of 283 cases. In view of the constant spike in Covid-19 cases, it seems the arrangements put in place by the administration to contain the virus spread have proved to be inadequate.
Sources said lack of coordination among officials has resulted in such an alarming situation.For smooth management of Covid-19 in the district, Collector Vijay Amruta Kulange assigned tasks to various officials in their respective areas.
The State Government also deputed several administrative officials to assist the district administration in dealing with the crisis. Officers on deputation are now handling the Covid situation in Ganjam.
While sub-divisional magistrate Sweta Kumar Das has been assigned the task to keep a tab on violators and seize narcotics, CID-CB DSP Anadi Sethi is in charge of creating awareness among the public against the deadly virus. On the day, 99 patients also recovered in Ganjam, taking the tally to 1,318 in the district.