Ranchi admin issues SOP for transit of migrant workers

Ranchi: To contain the spread of coronavirus by migrants returning home from various parts of the country, the Ranchi district administration on Thursday issued a standard operating procedure (SOP) for transit of migrants and directed officials from the district to block levels to ensure its strict implementation.
According to an official communiqué on the SOP, people passing through the district in their own vehicles will be allowed, but those entering the district on foot or bicycles will have to undergo compulsory medical screening and put in home isolation, shelter homes or quarantine centres based on their test results. Moreover, their travel history, including the different zones, will be recorded for subsequent action.
Talking to TOI, Ranchi deputy commissioner Rai Mahimapat Ray said, “We will allow people to pass through the city if they are in their personal vehicles, but if someone enters Ranchi’s borders on foot or bicycle, we will conduct a medical examination. And if they are coming from red zones, their swab samples will be collected and we will put them in quarantine centres. People from orange and green zones will be sent for home quarantine after a medical examination.”
He said the SOP was issued after a review meeting with the district-level task force on Covid-19. After the meeting, Ray took stock of preparedness of various cells working for combating the pandemic. The cells reviewed looked after the control room to call centres, ration and LPG distribution, transportation, logistics, quarantine and isolation centres, home delivery, CM kitchens, law and order and shelter homes located in the city as well as in border areas. Ray also gave fresh instructions after reviewing their progress.
In a directive, Ray asked all nodal officials to step up their work, keeping the gravity of the situation in mind, and said special stress should be given on movement of migrants. He added officers should put focus on their screening, surveillance and their origin of travel.
Ray further said there will be blanket ban of any kind on movement between two containment zones and if any block of the district receives a person from a red zone, their samples will be collected immediately and they will be sent to a quarantine centre (home or institutional) based on their test results.
Ray also directed the law and order cell to continue follow-up of people with foreign travel history through their respective police stations and said the lockdown will be implemented strictly in Hindpiri area. Officials manning the border areas were also instructed to step up vigil and follow guidelines of social distancing to prevent any further spread of Covid-19 in the district.
To ensure strict implementation of the guidelines in rural areas, Ray directed all block development and circle officers to hold a meeting with mukhiyas and village-level functionaries so that any person coming from outside is reported.
“Detailed information of each person entering district boundaries has to be maintained so that we can identify carriers of the viral infection, if any. The list must be updated every day and information should be made available with nodal heads in a routine manner,” Ray said in his directive to the officials.