JOIN USImprovise households as quarantine locations for asymptomatic Covid cases in villages: Centre to states
As Covid-19 pandemic hits rural India with high positivity rate and rising casualty from villages, the Centre has asked states to activate panchayats to provide the necessary institutional village-level support catering to their respective locations.
"Wherever possible, they may improvise households as home quarantine locations, where maximum of the asymptomatic Covid positive cases can be managed. Additionally, they may also set up specific quarantine/isolation centers for the needy and returning migrant labourers," the letter written by Panchayati Raj Ministry to the states read.
In consultation with the Health Department, the Panchayats may be designated to facilitate vaccination drives to ensure maximum coverage of eligible population”, the Ministry has suggested further.
Centre also asked the states to involve frontline volunteers from the local community in creating awareness about the disease and equip them with necessary protective systems like finger oxy-meters, N-95 masks, infrared thermal scanning instruments and sanitisers.
The ministry asked the states to take preventive measures to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic in rural India and to sensitise and facilitate the panchayats and other rural local bodies towards meeting the challenge and provide leadership.
With many medical myths spreading surrounding the pandemic, the government asked the states especially to take care to dispel false notions and beliefs and utilise the services of the elected panchayat representatives, teachers, ASHA workers, who have access to locals.
The Ministry has also advised state governments to leverage available IT infrastructure like panchayat offices, schools, common service centers to provide the residents real-time information on availability of testing/vaccination centers, doctors, hospital beds and related issues.
To deal with an emergency situation, the Ministry has asked states government to establish proper inter-linkages with the medical facilities at the nearby district and sub-districts so that emergency requirements like ambulances, advanced testing and treatment facilities, multi-speciality care etc. are provided to those in need without much loss of time.
States have also been asked to set up a suitable inter-departmental Monitoring mechanism comprising of officers of Panchayati Raj, Rural Development, Health, Revenue, Women & Child Development, Education Departments at Block, District and State level to regularly monitor the functioning of the Gram Panchayats and their Committees in respect of tackling the Covid pandemic and related public health issues.