Kerala: Advisory issued for guest workers to check spread of Covid-19

KOCHI: In the wake of increasing community spread cases in the state, the government has issued an advisory for guest workers coming to Kerala. Every guest worker must be tested for Covid-19 on their day of arrival, the cost of which has to be borne by the respective contractors.
Those that test negative should do room quarantine for 14 days while the positive ones will be sent to Covid hospitals. Symptomatic workers will be tested using the RT PCR method.
“It is an apt decision by the government,” said Dr G S Vijayakrishnan, general secretary, Kerala Government Medical Officers Association (KGMOA). He has but urged to ensure proper quarantining to avoid the spread.
“Unlike NRIs and returnees from other states who would be quarantined in their homes, the guest workers will go to a place of accommodation normally arranged by a contractor or will find accommodation on their own. Surely, 50 or 60 persons will be cramped up in a single house. Moreover, unlike a returning NRI who will remain home and his/ her contacts will be family members, the guest workers will go to different places for work and their contact range will be wider. So, there is a chance that the guest worker might spread the virus if not quarantined properly. It was evident when we conducted surveillance in several places in Thiruvananthapuram,” Vijayakrishnan said.
The task of ensuring proper quarantine is entrusted with the local bodies and other authorities. They will have to prevent crowding and ensure Covid protocol.
The advisory issued by state health secretary Dr Rajan Khobragade also states that health education should be imparted using appropriate languages. In case social distancing is not practical when they are put to work, extra precautions should be taken. It is also advised to avoid the sharing of equipment and tools as much as possible. Frequently shared equipment and areas where they touch quite often should be sanitized at fixed intervals. Social gathering of guest workers should be avoided, and they should be given social and psychological support, the advisory states.
“Guest workers from Bihar and Odisha are returning to Mumbai and Gujarat. The trains to those states are fully packed, it is learned," said D Narayana, former director, Gulati Institute of Finance Taxation (GIFT). "There is no similar flow of guest workers to Kerala and it could be due to the limited number of trains connecting the states and also because of the conditions laid down by the state government. But when the frequency of train services increase, more guest workers would come to Kerala,” he said.