Odisha asks Collectors to focus on community surveillance

Bhubaneswar: Terming June as very crucial in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, the Odisha government, here on Wednesday, asked the District Collectors to focus on the community surveillance.

"June is very crucial for all of us in this fight. Around 4.5 lakh people have returned to the state from different parts of the country. Many people have been discharged from institutional quarantine to home quarantine. We have to keep strict vigil and enforce the law," said Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy.

Tripathy reviewed the Covid situation in different districts through video link and directed the Collectors to form ward-level monitoring committees and strengthen community surveillance. Active participation of the community might check Covid-19 spike, he added.

Tripathy said quarantine protocols be followed scrupulously without any relaxation and asked the Collectors to intensify the IEC campaign to keep people alert and careful.

"People should be convinced not to confuse the relaxation for livelihood as relaxation in 'social distancing' and, the 'social distancing' norms must be enforced strictly," said Tripathy.

Development Commissioner Suresh Chandra Mohapatra said because of the dynamic nature and extent of the crisis, each district should have its own strategy of containing the disease. "Have an extensive IEC campaign to protect the old persons and people with co-morbidity," he said.

Director General of Police Abhaya asked the Superintendents of Police (SPs) to focus on five aspects of enforcement -- wearing of masks, shutdown in 11 declared districts on Saturdays and Sundays, evening and night curfew, regulation of marriages and funerals and social distancing with its original zeal.

Abhaya said focus should be on places and institutions that attracted the people.

Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Pradeep Kumar Jena asked the Collectors to ensure quality of management in temporary medical camps and quarantine centres as per the SOP. He advised issue of proper discharge certificates to returnees on their discharge from the quarantine centres for facilitating their acceptance in the community.

Meanwhile, former Principal Health Secretary Nikunja Bihari Dhal took to twitter to clarify community transmission of COVID-19.

Dhal said that, the present situation in the State doesn’t indicate onset of transmission at community level.

"It is not correct to say that every country or state shall someday enter the community transmission phase. We can prevent that through cluster containment, tracing and testing of all contacts, and by following public health advisories issued by Health Department," added Dhal.

He further stated that, public health measures can break the chain of transmission, lessen the virulence of the pandemic and minimise mortality.

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