BHUBANESWAR: With reports of foreign-returned people violating home quarantine, the state government has decided to paste stickers outside the houses of persons placed under home isolation as per the protocol to prevent local transmission of COVID-19.
This, the government is hopeful, will help community monitoring which is a global way of dealing with the situation.
As per the community monitoring guidelines, stickers will be pasted outside the houses of home-quarantined persons with clear instruction to the local community not to visit the houses and keep a tab on such persons.
The exercise is also aimed at restricting mobility of the virus suspect but will not cover those who have completed quarantine.
“The stickers will mention duration of home quarantine, details of house and family. Clear instructions would be given to the community not to visit the houses. The list of quarantined homes will be shared with local police station for maintaining a strict vigil on the houses. Workers of Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) cell will also monitor these cases,” said chief spokesperson on COVID-19 Subroto Bagchi.
While the Collectors and municipal corporations have been asked to ensure compliance, they will also keep a vigil so that these people do not face any social boycott.
The district administration will properly inquire before pasting stickers and make sure these households are getting essential commodities during the quarantine period.
District Collectors have also been allowed to apply similar guidelines to people returning from coronavirus-affected States as and when required.
The decision was taken following allegations of quarantine protocol violation against 104 persons who recently returned from overseas. Police has, so far, registered three cases against four individuals.
Meanwhile, Health and Family Welfare Secretary Nikunja Bihari Dhal has asked all Collectors to take immediate steps to ensure home quarantine of migrant workers who have recently returned from COVID-19 affected States like Kerala and Maharashtra in cramped trains.
“The migrant workers need to be quarantined as they are potential risks,” he told the Collectors and sought support from the community members insisting that they should not boycott the workers socially as they are isolating themselves to keep others safe.
No surge in positive cases
There has been no surge in COVID-19 positive cases in the State. Of the 85 samples sent for test, 83 tested negative.
Two cases have tested positive and health condition of the two patients is stated to be stable. So far, 3,667 persons have registered through Government portal and 104 Helpline and 35 suspects are in hospital isolation.
State plans dedicated COVID hospitals
As coronavirus spreads its tentacles across India with more positive cases coming to fore, Odisha Government is ramping up health care infrastructure by roping in private hospitals which would create dedicated COVID-19 care in Bhubaneswar and two other places of the State.
Sources said top functionaries of the State administration held talks with officials of SUM Hospital and KIMS. Plans are afoot to create two 500-bed facilities in Bhubaneswar to be designated as temporary COVID hospitals.
Necessary lungs support care, oxygen systems apart from isolation wards would be created there. There would be two such dedicated COVID facilities in Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur.
One is being planned in Kendrapara town whereas the other is expected in Jagatsinghpur’s Raghunathpur where a school building could be converted into hospital.
Adding 1000-beds in the Capital would give a boost to critical care is need arises in next few weeks.