Local bodies to keep tabs on persons in home quarantine

Panaji: Goa Institute of Public Administration and Rural Development (GIPARD) has formulated an advisory for the local bodies on their role to ensure that a person who is in home quarantine is following norms and adhering to the guidelines laid down in view of COVID-19 in their respective villages.

The government has already directed the sarpanch, panch members and secretary of the village panchayats to monitor the person kept under home quarantine in their respective villages.

The GIPARD advisory states that the house in which any member has been home quarantined will be prominently marked by the local health authority and the ward member must remain vigilant and in contact with such persons, so that they do not jump home quarantine.

It further stated that the local bodies should create a database of all such persons under home quarantine and their immediate family members, to enable quick communication and to attend to their needs, if any.

It said that the local body representatives as well as the members of the committees of such local body should maintain vigil and monitor the movements of such persons in home quarantine and other members of the household are also expected to maintain quarantine.

Since such persons are not able to move around or leave their home premises, each ward member should endeavour to arrange for their needs in terms of essential supplies, groceries, medicine etc.

Moreover, it stated that the local body should carry out awareness within the local community in the immediate neighbourhood on the importance of home quarantining and the neighbourhood and the ward should cooperate and not socially ostracise or stigmatise such persons or their family members.

Any attempt to cause problems to such persons will invite action under provision of the disaster management act, 2005.

In case of any information on adverse health conditions of such persons, who are home quarantined, the ward members should immediately report the matter to the local primary, community or urban health centre.

It also advised that the local body members should keep track of any unknown persons, non-residents arriving in the locality or ward for the purpose of residency and indentify the premises where they are located and inform the health or police authorities. In the event that any home quarantine person is found to be venturing out of the home premises such person should be reported to the police and health authorities immediately for taking action to quarantine the entire family at the paid institutional quarantine facility.