PATNA: In a first for the country, the state Disaster Management Department in Bihar after conducting a micro analysis of ratio and rate of migrant workers testing positives and the places wherefrom they have returned from, has introduced a new 3-tier quarantine level. Over 5 lakh migrant-labourers have returned so far from other states and more than a thousand of them tested positive from May 3 to 21.
According to an official figure 1,184 migrant-labourers returned from other states including Delhi and Maharashtra, have been tested positive since May 3 to 21.
Among them highest number of333 are from Delhi followed 293 from Maharashtra 212 from Gujarat,80 from Haryana and 62 from West Bengal.
In initial days of the outbreak of pandemic and subsequent lockdown, the migrant workers or whosoever returned from outside the state were quarantined at Panchayat level of quarantine centres.
But now the surging number of migrants and majority of them being tested positive every day, the strategy of providing them quarantine has been elaborated with due to consideration ensuring effective social distancing.
"Now, the state is providing the migrant workers or whoever return by the Sharmik special or other means of communication under the three categories from the village, Panchayat to block levels of quarantine," shared principal secretary of Disaster Management Department Pratyay Amrit to this newspaper.
Detailing about the strategy, he said that those who return from Surat, Ahmadabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Pune,Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurgram, Noida, Kolkata and Bangalore are placed under quarantine at 'A 'category of centres set up at block level.
The district magistrate of every district has been authorised to include the city of returning of migrant workers as per the emerging situation.
All other cities of the country have been placed under the Category-B and the migrant workers who return from anyone of those cities are being quarantined at Panchayat level of centres if they are found developing some symptoms of COVID-19 or are suspected in the initial screening.
At the block level of quarantine centres, if the migrants are not found with some symptoms of COVID-19 during the 14 days of stay, they are allowed to ho home with a condition to maintaining at least seven days of home quarantine also.
Pratyay Amrit further confirmed the migrant workers, who return from the cities excluded from the category of 'A" are sent for home quarantine if they don't show a sign of infection of COVID-19.
"All details of migrant workers are taken at the time of their return including the bank account numbers with the Aadhaar card numbers so that they can be financial assistance including the reimbursement of travel costs can be done," he said.
Meanwhile, official sources said that 1.81,500 migrant workers returned to Bihar from outside by 110 Sharmik special trains on Friday while 1,93,400 migrant worker are scheduled to return on Saturday by 118 special trains.