BALANGIR: The Likhiria village under Rishida panchayat in Balangir district and 20 other villages in its vicinity were notified as containment zone after two Covid-19 positive cases were reported from the area on Friday.
The patients - 22-year-old and 18-year-old youths - had returned from Tamil Nadu on March 17 but they tested positive for coronavirus almost after 40 days. The two labourers informed local ASHA workers of having fever on April 27 and a day later, their swab samples were sent to RMRC, Bhubaneswar, for the test which came out positive on Friday.
Sources said the two were in home quarantine for 14 days immediately after they returned to the village. When they did not face any health issues after their quarantine period, the duo visited several households, played with other youths, and even worked in a rice mill near the village for some days. They have been admitted to Covid-19 hospital at Balangir and their contact tracing is underway.
Following this, the whole area was declared a containment zone and sealed. The villages have been sanitised. Besides, Likhiria-Tikiripada, Likhiria-Salepali, Likhiria-Barla, Deogaon-Madanapali and Deogaon-Gaibahal roads have been sealed. Collector Arindam Dakua said health teams have been deployed in the containment zone to conduct medical examinations of people.
Swab samples of all the villages in the zone have been collected for examination. A control room (06652232322) has been opened at the Sub-Collector’s office which people in the containment zone can use in case of emergency. Meanwhile, IAS officers Sushil Kumar Lohani and Benudhar Behera who have been put in charge of Bolangir, Bargarh and Nuapada districts, visited Balangir on Saturday and reviewed preparedness of the district administration in dealing with the pandemic.