Focus on Community Monitoring of COVID-19 Management: CS to Collectors, SPs

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy has urged the District Collectors and SPs to focus on community surveillance and community monitoring of Covid-19.

Tripathy said this while reviewing the Covid situation in different districts over video conferencing from Lokseba Bhawan last evening.

He said, “ The month of June is very crucial for all of us in our fight against the crisis. Around 4.5 lakh people have returned to 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 laws”.

Chief Secretary further directed the Collectors to form Ward level monitoring committees and strengthen community surveillance of Covid.

Active participation of the community can check spike in spread of the disease, the Chief Secretary said while reiterating to follow quarantine protocols scrupulously without any relaxation.

The Collectors were asked to intensify the IEC campaign at all levels to keep the 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”, he said.

Adding to the Chief Secretary, 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”.

The Director General of Police Abhaya directed the SPs to focus on five aspects of enforcement. These included wearing of masks, shutdown in eleven declared districts on Saturdays and Sundays, evening and night curfew, regulation of marriages and funerals and social distancing with its original zeal.

He further directed, “to focus on places and institutions that attract the people. This will automatically reduce the number of people on the streets”.

He directed to strictly control wandering of the people outside without any emergency”.

Additional Chief Secretary and SRC Pradeep Kumar Jena asked the Collectors to ensure quality of management in TMC and quarantine centers as per the SOP. He further advised to issue proper discharge certificates to the returnees on their discharge from the quarantine centers for facilitating their acceptance in the community.

Police Commissioner Bhubaneswar-Cuttack Commissionerate Sudhansu Sadangi, Secretary IT and Special Secretary Commerce & Transport Manoj Mishra , Commissioner Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation Prem Chandra Chaudhary joined the Chief Secretary in this VC.