BERHAMPUR: In the midst of the unrelenting Covid-19 crisis, the district administration has decided to once again carry out a door-to-door health survey in urban areas of Ganjam from August 8. Expressing concern over the alarming rise in a number of positive cases, Collector Vijay Kulange on Thursday directed officials concerned to initiate stringent action against violators of COVID norms.
“It has come to the notice of the administration that several shops in urban areas are not following norms. Even religious places are mostly crowded,” he said. The officials were also asked to take stringent action against auto-rickshaw drivers who carry more than three passengers in their vehicles.
From now on, tehsildars will be held responsible for violation of norms in their respective areas. Kulange said each block will have at least one temporary medical camp and directed officials to collect the details of patients who have recovered from Covid-19 and encourage them to donate their plasma. The Collector further asked the officials to ensure there are no deficiencies in ambulance services.
The ambulance cell functioning from the RTO office at Chhatrapur was asked to furnish details pertaining to the service on a regular basis. In a bid to enable people to report suspected cases, another dedicated number 06811-263774 was unveiled in the district on the day.
Meanwhile, the district administration has decided to open a 40-bed Covid Care Hospital at Kabi Samrat Upendra Bhanja (KSUB) College in Bhanjanagar.
The hospital, to be set up by the State Government in partnership with Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), will have 10 ICUs. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Bikram Keshari Arukha along with Kandhamal MP Achyuta Samanta and other senior officials visited KSUB College to take stock of infrastructure available at the institution.
In the wake of the fire tragedy at a Covid hospital at Ahmedabad in which eight people lost their lives, the Fire department is gearing up to inspect fire safety measures at facilities in the district. Even as most educational institutions, which have been converted into Covid Care Centres have proper entry and exit points, no fire safety audit has yet been conducted at the facilities.
A senior official said fire personnel have been busy in conducting sanitisation drives and now their focus will be on inspection of safety measures in buildings especially the ones where Covid patients are housed.
With 268 fresh cases reported on the day, the Covid-19 tally in the district went past 12,000. Of the new cases, while 34 are Covid warriors, the rest are active contacts. The district also reported three more deaths, taking the toll to 120.
Rs 1,700 crore emergency credit disbursed
Bhubaneswar: Covid hotspot Ganjam is the major beneficiary of Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme rolled out by the Centre in May to support small businesses. Of the `2,500 crore sanctioned by banks against 1.6 lakh accounts under the scheme, `1,700 crore has been disbursed to one lakh beneficiaries in Ganjam alone.This was informed by convener of the State Level Bankers’ Committee to MSME Minister Dibya Shakar Mishra during a review meeting on Thursday. While praising the efforts of the General Manager, District Industries Centre (DIC) of Ganjam, Mishra directed the field staff of other districts to encourage people, especially those in small businesses to take the benefit of the scheme.