The GHMC has issued instructions on Monday, designating 17 special officers each for the 17 units in city, where COVID-19 positive cases have been identified during the past two to three days.
Following Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao’s directions to divide the 30 circles into 17 units and appoint special officers each from Health & Medical, Police, Revenue and Municipal wings, the GHMC Commissioner has accordingly issued orders on behalf of the corporation, appointing officers of additional commissioner, joint commissioner, and superintending engineers for the post.
Instead of the 12 containment clusters, as announced earlier, the government has later reduced the extent and increased the number of such areas, and named them as containment zones.
Each containment zone includes the premises where the COVID-19 positive patient stayed, and the surrounding areas he/she visited. Officials from the GHMC informed that a total of 126 such zones have been identified across the city, where cases have been identified for the past few days.
These containment zones will be barricaded and no outsider will be allowed to enter them. The residents of these zones will not be allowed to step outside, and officials will ensure that they get all the essential supplies and ration at the doorstep.
Family members of the COVID-19 patient will be shifted to the quarantine centre, and their samples sent for tests. Even if the tests are negative, they will have to stay at the centre for the mandatory 14 days, the incubation period of novel coronavirus.
“Besides, our teams consisting of ASHA workers and others will visit all the homes in the containment zone on daily basis and take note of their health status. If anything is noticed off the mark, they will inform the medical officer deputed for the zone, who in turn will shift the person to the quarantine facility, and take follow up action,” the official said.
The number of containment zones will increase every time a patient is discovered in the newer areas, he said. All the containment zones will be disinfected regularly apart from the quarantine facilities.